


The Pony Palace

by EnsignDisaster



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: AU, F/M, Gen, Humor, Masturbation, Romance, Strong sexual themes, move over coffee shop au, no beta but still good, strip club au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2020-02-25
Packaged: 2020-04-23 08:40:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19147483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EnsignDisaster/pseuds/EnsignDisaster
Summary: She takes one last look up at the giant neon sign that bathed the back lot in a sickly yellow glow. The winking cowgirl with the flashing words ‘Pony Palace’ seemed to taunt Beth while the marquee underneath boasted ‘GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS.’***Come on down to Detroit's one and only choice for premiere adult entertainment establishment THE PONY PALACE! We've gotbeautiful exotic dancers just waiting to give you the show of a lifetime! If you desire that extra special VIP treatment don't be afraid to ask for BIG TONY! Our lap dances and drinks are so good they ought to be criminal! SO COME ON DOWN TODAY!!!





	1. Meet um Cute?!?

_ “Why do we have almost **nothing** in our accounts?” _

 

_ “Are we going to lose the house?” _

 

_ “We have four children!” _

 

“Hey Bethie how did you know you were pregnant like before taking a test or whatever?” A sickeningly sweet high pitched voice snaps the redhead mother of four out of her stupor as she looks up at her coworker Candy leaning against the dirty brick wall.

 

“Oh well I would get this strong craving for chinese chicken salad you know the kind that comes in a box at the store and the smell of cooked eggs absolutely repulsed me.” She answers honestly smiling at the memories of being pregnant with each of her babies, back when she felt she could protect them safe and warm in her body from the harsh realities of the world, back when she thought Dean could protect them all...how naive she’d been. “But you know everybody is different, my sister was just really tired all the time and my friend Ruby got real bad heartburn.”

 

Beth watched as the twenty year old blonde poked and prodded her exposed tan flat stomach while the other hand held a lit Virginia Slim. 

 

“I don’t know it might be nothing but I just feel different after hooking up with this guy last night. It was like we had this deep spiritual connection and maybe my body is telling me that we’re meant to be together and to start a family.”

 

Beth was pretty sure that it was actually the giant breakfast burrito that she’d seen Candy wolfing down earlier that was the source of the young dancers  _ spiritual awakening _ but she didn’t want to crush the poor dear’s hopes.

 

“So who’s the lucky guy?”

 

“Ummm I want to say his name was...John or maybe it was Juan?!” 

 

Shaking her head Beth had to remind herself not to go into full disapproving big sis mode. Candy was a grown adult (barely) and could make her own decisions even if they were incredibly dumb. 

 

Suddenly the heavy metal door next to them slammed open and a flood of multicolored lights and thumping bass filled the back alley. Edgar, one of the clubs multiple bouncers stuck his large square head out into the cold night.

 

“Break times over ladies, Candy your dance slot has been moved up so you’re on the main stage in five and just a heads up Beth it’s kind of crazy in here tonight.”

 

“Ugh I hate it when they do this!” Candy whines throwing her cigarette butt to the ground and stomping on it with glittery purple 6 inch heels before storming inside.

 

Beth lets out a deep long sigh and gets up from her seated position on the dirty cold curb, taking a second to grab Candy’s discarded butt and disposing of it properly in the dumpster not three feet away. She takes one last look up at the giant neon sign that bathed the back lot in a sickly yellow glow. The winking cowgirl with the flashing words ‘ _ Pony Palace _ ’ seemed to taunt Beth while the marquee underneath boasted ‘ _ GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS.’ _

 

Six months ago she’d never even heard of this dump now it looked like she might never leave. 

 

Squaring her shoulders Beth marched back into the strip club pushing through a wall of cheap perfume, cigarette smoke, and booze. She still had a few more hours till her shift ended at 4am.

 

Seven months ago she’d been happy or at the very least content. It was scary how one teeny tiny straw could break the camels back, the camel being Beth’s entire life and the straw being Amber’s fucking sparkle dental floss thong. Now she was no longer a housewife but still a mother, Beth children were her top propriety, followed by Annie and Ruby, going down the list until finally beneath worms and just about manure came Dean.

 

Everything just kept piling on adding Ruby and Annie's own problems to the mix. Dean after hours of fighting and Beth smashing her favorite sangria bowl against the wall had finally moved out but he was still reluctant on actually signing the divorce papers. Annie was working doubles at Fine and Frugal to just barely afford a custody lawyer fresh out of law school while also dodging Boomer’s creepy advances. Both Ruby and Stan were running themselves ragged to able to afford Sara’s medication, a lesser quality one to the desired experimental drug but still way over their budget on the bright side it was keeping Sara going if only barely.

 

It was a nightmare. But after half a year that nightmare had become routine.

 

Beth still had four kids to take care of, a thrice mortgaged house to manage, ruined credit, and an empty bank account. 

 

She’d lasted less than a week at the dealership thinking she could do the office filing and paperwork for extra money. But Dean kept shooting her pitiful glances and cornering her in the break room begging to come home, Amber practically ran for the hills if they were within fifty feet of each other  _ please _ like Dean was worthy of a cat fight. The awkward atmosphere was affecting the sales staff so Beth removed herself from the equation as soon as possible.

 

She’d applied for every job under the sun but who was going to hire a woman pushing forty who hadn’t worked a job in close to twenty years with an unfinished bachelor's degree in English because Dean had convinced her that halfway through her sophomore year of college that she should focus on her pregnancy with Kenny using the exact words.

 

_ “Don’t worry Bethie I’ll make enough for all of us.” _

 

God she felt like such an idiot.

 

After a particularly hard day of five rejection emails in a row Beth had been at the end of her rope and took a drive not really paying attention to which direction she was headed. She’d ended up in a not so nice area where the suburbs ended and the true city of Detroit began.

 

She’d parked her mini van in between some piles of trash and what looked like a gathering of junkies and screamed her lungs out, tears running down her face while beating the steering wheel.

 

The tweakers remained unfazed by the crazy white lady in the honking soccer mom car. 

 

After what felt like hours but in reality was more likely twenty minutes or so, she’d calmed down enough to notice the blinking yellow light leaking through her windshield. And there it was  _ ‘The Pony Palace.’ _

 

“Well...fuck it.” Beth had sighed before climbing out of her car and making her way into the strip club. Wiping her eyes she’d approached the bartender, a short, older Asian guy by the name of Joe who’d taken one look at Beth in her mom jeans and pink knit sweater and almost laughed her lily ass back onto the street when she'd requested a job application.

 

So she channeled Annie’s ability to pester the ever loving shit out of people and kept asking for thirty straight minutes, it’s a miracle Joe hadn’t simply had her thrown out. But eventually Beth had worn the poor guy down and he let her know that the next day at noon Big Tony, the clubs owner, would be holding auditions for a new dancer position, he’d handed her a sign up sheet and shooed her out the door.

 

She’d gotten home giddy on a mental high, drank way too much cheap bourbon, fell into bed, and woke up with a massive hangover.

 

The next morning she’d made the kids breakfast, drank a gallon of water, dressed in a conservative navy dress, and carted everyone off to Dean’s bachelor pad. She’d barely made it to the club with seconds to spare after getting lost three times with only vague memories and google maps to guide her.

 

It was only as Beth was walking into the quiet and nearly empty club that the full force of her rash decision hit her. 

 

This wasn’t a job interview. It was an audition **-to be a stripper-** where people paid you money to take off your clothes. No one had seen Beth naked in close to five years unless you counted Emma who had the uncanny ability to need to use the potty when Beth was bathing and  _ “Kenny’s hogging the upstairs one mommy.” _

 

_ “NEXT!”  _ Shouted a large Italian man who could only have been Big Tony, the nickname clearly not a joke as the man was pushing 350 pounds with unnatural orange skin and wiry black hair plugs sat at a small table sipping a fruity pina colada and taking notes on a clipboard.

 

She’d almost run right back out the door if not for the thought of another day pouring over late bills to decide which one took priority and her children's faces as she had to deny them another toy or even a small candy bar at the checkout line again. It was only going to get worse if she didn’t find a job soon god forbid she had to go crawling back to Dean for money.

 

So Beth climbed the stairs and waited for the music cue, some cheesy electronica that made her head hurt, while a line of scantily clad twenty somethings looked on in boredom.

 

To say Elizabeth Boland bombed the audition would have been polite. 

 

She’d moved her hips to the beat stiffly and out of sync, when Beth grabbed the metal pole she’d grimaced at the sweat from the previous dancer still clinging to it, it was clear she was meant to shed some articles of clothing but Beth could only bring herself to lift the skirt of her dress to mid thigh of her pale legs.

 

After one grueling minute Big Tony called for a stop.

 

_ “Listen chickie you’ve got the body for it but not the talent maybe next time...Next!” _

 

Gathering what little dignity she had left Beth climbed down from the stage and shuffled past the line of now snickering girls her eyes glued to the sticky floor. She’d almost made it to the door fully prepared to drown her humiliation with booze, junk food, and many tears before Big Tony’s booming voice called after her.

 

_ “Wait! One of our waitresses ran off with her junky boyfriend a few days ago and you’re about her size, saves on getting a new uniform fitted. It don’t pay as much as dancin but it’s somethin...you up for it?”  _

 

So here she was six months in as a cocktail waitress for one of Detroit’s seedier strip clubs. Working the slow day shift during the week so she could be with her babies during the mornings and evenings but Friday through Sunday when Dean had the kids was where she made the money that kept food on the table and a roof over their heads. 

 

So what if it was hundreds compared to the dancers thousands, cold hard cash was cold hard cash. And like everything else in her life Beth put a hundred percent into it. She picked up peoples shifts, made small talk with the extra lonely customers, and brought her brown butter chocolate cookies on slow nights. She was a model employee at a high turn over joint.

 

She still wasn't sure if Big Tony had taken pity on her that day or if he really was too cheap to order a new uniform most likely a bit of both. It was a skimpy black number that was obviously a Playboy Bunny knock off only missing the ears and tall. But with some simple sewing Beth was able to make it fit her like a glove and it’d definitely helped with tips even if she was still even months later uncomfortable with amount of cleavage and butt cheek it revealed.

 

“Beth three Bud Lights for table seven, these sambucas are for table three, and the usual for Marty.” Joe called before rushing off to mix more drinks for the crowded bar.

 

“Got it!” Beth shouted back picking up the heavy tray and making her way onto the floor crowded with overstuffed pleather chairs, tiny tables, and just barely enough light for Beth to see where she’s going. 

 

The Bud lights were for a couple frat boys who stuck a five in her garter belt, the sambucas were for a bachelorette party giggling about being in an  _ actual _ strip club, and finally Marty’s drink.

 

“One vodka cranberry just for you.” Beth smiled placing the order in front of the small bespectacled man just as Candy finished her routine. 

 

“Thanks Beth I got a feelin tonights gonna be one for the record books.” the shy man grinned back while placing a ten on the table. Marty was one of the Pony’s regulars a mild mannered accountant who came in at least three times a week, very sweet and harmless.

 

“You know I’ve got to agree with you Marty there’s a certain electricity in the air.” Beth giggled before slipping the tip into the secret pocket in her uniform it made the night go easier if she didn't have to rush to the back to drop her tips in her locker.

 

“ **Ladies and Gentlemen please welcome to the stage CARMEN!”**

  
  


Beth watched in amusement as Marty’s attention shifted to the main stage when the object of his affections entered to the opening notes of  _ ‘I Dont Mind’ _ by Usher. Marty really only had eyes for Carmen the Pony Palace’s current most popular performer, the lithe Latina who could twerk like a gold medalist.

 

“Beth!” Joe’s voice called for her from the bar and she quickly left the mesmerized Marty although she did receive a smack to her backside from a burly biker looking dude who got a whoop of approval from his friends. Red faced Beth continued towards the bar knowing that only dancers got people tossed for inappropriate touching so she simply had to grin and bear it.

 

“What’s up?”

 

“Big Tony’s got an important meeting going on in his booth and he wants you to serve them so he says be on your best behavior and whatever the guest asks for you do, got it?” Joe explained placing Big Tony’s usual pina colada and a chilled class of mezcal on her tray.

  
  


Beth can’t help questioning “I got it but I’ve served Tony’s associates before what’s so different about this one?”  she’s been doing this for a while now and the only mistakes she’s made so far is dropping a few empty glasses and calling out last minute when Jane had come down with the stomach flu. Why does she need to be lectured?

 

“That is above my pay grade hun, all I know is this guy is  _ uber importante _ so best foot forward kay.” And with that Joe waves her away to the corner booth.

 

She huffs slightly before making her way to the best seat in the house, a private booth Big Tony usually sits in alone going over the books and sipping his sugary cocktails. He’s got his own office with a huge two way mirror lining the walls on the other side of the club but claims that the middle of the action is where to be especially on a bustling Friday night like tonight.

 

“Ahh Beth perfect timing this is my new business partner…well hopefully if he likes what he sees tonight and I’m sure he will.” Big Tony flashes his pearly white capped teeth at her while gesturing to the shadowed figure on the other side of the table. She understands the underlying message ‘ _ serve the guest first and be a good girl.’ _

 

She pivots on her kitten heels painting on a sweet customer service smile and gets her first look at the stranger, “Good evening sir welcome to the Pony Pal-”

 

She freezes.

 

Beth’s never frozen over any man before but then again the cavewoman part of her brain is jumping up and done screaming  _ ‘This isn’t just any man! This is  _ **_THE MAN_ ** _!’ _

 

The lighting is better here for Tony to write in the books so Beth sees all of him. A tall lean body that looks like it’s holding a massive amount of strength and tension just beneath the surface while he lounges back acting like he already owns the building and everyone in it.

 

Deep tan skin over an angular face with thick eyebrows above intense black eyes casually look back at her. Everything from the closely shaved head, the neat five o’clock shadow, and the large neck tattoo of an eagle that rests atop his dark button up ties together into a powerful statement.

 

**I’m. The. King.**

 

She’s so focused on his bottom lip that Beth completely misses one of those thick dark eyebrows raising in question...waiting for her. It’s only when Big Tony clears his throat that the curvy redhead snaps out of it.

 

“S-s-sorry one mezcal for the gentleman.” She bends at the waist to place the glass in front of him which he takes with a large graceful hand, their fingers just missing each other.

 

“And one pina colada extra cherries for Big Ton-Oh!” There’s a hard smack against her butt that coupled with her already frazzled nerves causes the glass to go flying out of her grip.

 

It’s like slow motion as Beth watches with big blue eyes the normally twelve dollar cocktail sail through the air. Carmen’s twerk skills are at full zenith up on the stage behind her, the douchebag who’d slapped her ass is getting high fives from his buddies,and Candy is providing a table dance for the tipsy bachelorette party. 

 

Then time catches up.

 

The tall tropical glass complete with hot pink umbrella lands on it's side across the table with a  _ *THUD* _ launching pale coconut liqueur and rum slurry directly onto the very expensive looking black coat of Big Tony’s uber importante guest.

 

_ ‘Oh fuck I’am so fired!’ _

 

***

Rio has a love-hate relationship with flipping his game.

 

He loved it because it meant he was moving up in the world. There were more business’ to run, more money to be had, more territory to control, and more overall power.

 

It also came with more people poking their noses in his shit, more avenues he had to cover not to get caught, and ultimately more danger.

 

But flipping his game was a necessity if one wanted to stay on top and Rio loved being on top.

 

So when he and the boys had rocked up to the  _ ‘Pony Palace’ _ he didn’t really have high hopes but having his laundered money in multiple business’ was what he needed, some were boring and mundane like Fine and Frugal.

 

_ ‘And some were well...this.’  _ Rio mused looking up at the winking cowgirl sign with Bullet and Carlos flanking him.

 

‘The Pony’ was a staple of Detroit with a long trashy history, Rio could remember stories about it from his own childhood. It’d changed hands multiple times over the past thirty years with Big Tony, real name Anthony Zossleke, the guy he was meeting tonight running the show for the past ten. The club had arson attempts, drive-bys, and bomb threats mostly from jealous boyfriends and a few girlfriends but still it stood serving over priced alcohol and cheap thrills to the fine people of the city.

 

The point was the strip club was a survivor and things had been stable since Big Tony had taken over which was one of the reasons Rio was even considering washing his cash through it.

 

Funnily enough when he’d been younger Rio and his friends used to joke about sneaking into  _ ‘The Pony’ _ and seeing a real pair of  _ tetas  _ up close and personal. Then he’d started his hustle and barely had time for such lustful pursuits beyond one night stands. Hell it was a miracle he’d shacked up long enough with his ex to produce Marcus.

 

Plus he wasn’t gonna pay to see some tits and ass he wasn’t even allowed to touch.

 

When Rio walked into the club he’d been a little shocked as he carefully took in the main room. Sure it had all the signs of a trashy strip club with stuffy air, the cheesy multi-colored lights with lasers, and obnoxious DJ in the booth who announced the next dancer. 

 

But it did have some promising points like the fully stocked bar hugging the back wall, the wide variety of clientele from bikers to middle management white collars, and finally who could forget the talent.

 

Rio gave a cursory glance to the stripper performing on stage; a caramel toned skinny girl who was flat as cardboard but did have a phat ass. Although his boy Eddie kept telling him the correct term these days was ‘thicc’...at the end of the day Rio counted himself lucky he remembered the dance was called twerking. 

 

“Walk the room anything don’t feel right you let me know.” He instructed his men before heading to the corner booth where Big Tony was waiting, beaming with a shiny tint to his round orange face.

 

“Rio! My Boy! So good of you to come I think you’ll like what I’m going to purpose.” They shook hands in greeting, the old mans distinctly sweatier than Rio’s. 

 

Certain connections had suggested the two men might be mutually beneficial for each other, Rio had a surplus of cash and other products while Big Tony had a location and paperwork to make everything look legit.

 

“I took the liberty of ordering a round for us, I hear you’re a mezcal man.”

 

“I’ve been known to sip it from time to time.”

 

“A man who holds his cards close to his chest I like that!” Big Tony let out a whopping laugh before going into his spiel about their future partnership.

 

Rio only half listened to the fat man as he looked around the room. He already had a plan in mind and getting this fool to fall in line wouldn’t be too difficult so why waste time listening to Tony’s hot air.

 

A shout of triumph caught his attention and he shifted his gaze to the direction it was coming from. A group a dude-bros pushing each other around and a rather flustered waitress flouncing away. 

 

_ ‘Damn now that’s a mami right there.’  _ Rio had to give Big Tony some credit, the man sure had a good eye.

 

While the stripper on stage could boost a nice ass the woman picking up their round was truly the whole package. Curves for days hugged perfectly in a black one piece number just missing the ears and tail, Rio’d seen the other wait staff wearing similar uniforms though none of them were pulling it off half as well as her. 

 

Rio glanced to the side reassured to see Big Tony still on his tangent and switched back to the redhead making her way towards their booth,feminine hips swaying side to side.

 

“Ahh Beth perfect timing this is my new business partner…well hopefully if he likes what he sees.” And now he knows her name though it doesn’t feel quite right to the gang leader, too short, too simple.

 

She gives her boss a nod but turning towards and her big blue eyes meet his jet black.

“Good evening sir welcome to the Pony Pal-” are the only words that make it out of her pouty red lips before the redhead halts, he does love how she addresses him as ‘Sir’ though.

 

Rio understands the effect he has on people that he’s cultivated over many years in his line of work both women and men drawn to him and his energy. 

 

But it was extremely rare for him to feel the same way.

 

Back lit by the stage lights up her pale skin making it glow and the red curls framing her face bounce in just the right way. It’s just too bad her poker face isn’t nearly as good as his because he can read her like an open book.

 

He raises an eyebrow as Tony coughs to bring her back down to planet earth Rio’s mouth curls amusement as Beth, if he remembers her name right snaps out of it.

 

“S-s-sorry one mezcal for the gentleman.” She bends forward to deliver his drink and he takes the opportunity while her eyes are lowered to admire her because being blessed with a chest like that should be goddamn illegal.

 

Too bad for the both of them he’s here on other matters so he reluctantly swings his attention back to Big Tony who looks to be eagerly awaiting his sugary monstrosity of a cocktail in her delicate grasp.

 

“And one pina colada extra cherries for Big Ton-Oh!” Later Rio will curse himself for not having clocked the asshole’s underhanded arch towards her fine plush behind, he must be getting too slow or too comfortable, things a man like him can ill afford.

 

All he knows is that two seconds later the left side of his body covered by his ralph lauren peacoat is soaking wet and frigid, a few droplets even reach his chin, his nose overwhelmed with the scent of coconut.

 

Rio lets a small smirk slip as he takes in the matching horrified faces of Beth and Big Tony.

 

_ ‘Well this definitely got a lot more interesting!’ _


	2. Mami Mode

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rio concludes business and Beth practices.

Two actions happen simultaneously after a few seconds of stunned silence pass.

 

“Oh my god-oh my god-oh my god I’m so so so sorry!” Beth is frantically bending halfway over the wide table one hand attempting to soak up the spill on its surface with the majorly unabsorbant bar napkins while the other is tugging on the lapel of Rio’s coat trying to get a better look at the worsening stain, “It’s not too bad I-I can fix it don’t worry.” She pleads to the slim Latino.

 

“GOD DAMN IT BETH! I GIVE YOU ONE FUCKIN JOB TO DO AND YOU CAN’T EVEN DO THAT!” Big Tony roars causing a number of patrons to look over, even Marty unglues his eyes from Carmen’s ass to see what the commotion is about. Remembering himself the rotund man adjusts his cheap polyester suit and recovers, “Just clean my friend’s coat here, and it better be spotless with a fresh drink when you get back. We’re gonna have a little chat about professionalism later Chickie.”

 

He shakes a meaty finger under her nose and thoroughly chastised Beth steps back red faced waiting for Rio to make a move.

 

For his part the gang leader watches the exchange in silent amusement. He looks Beth up and down one last time before shrugging off the sticky coat and handing it over eyes following after the redhead as she scurries off disappearing behind a sparkly beaded curtain.

 

“Forgive Bethie she’s usually one of my best girls. Maybe tonight is just an off night.” Tony offers up a weak explanation and Rio suddenly remembers the other man’s presence. 

 

“Don’t matter jus a coat.” He also lets go of the friend comment because he is decidedly not this guy’s buddy, “But here’s what does matter. If we’re gonna do this we gotta start off slow. I gotta make this worth my time and I don’t just put my money into every dog and  _ pony  _ show that lands in my lap.”

 

He can tell the pun is lost on Big Tony but he can also see the dollar signs appearing in the older man's eyes, good Rio knows how to handle greed.

 

“How much we talkin?”

 

“We’ll start with 100k and after a month if things go smoothly we’ll go bigger.”

 

“How much is my cut?”

 

“20 percent.”

 

“Please my names on the lease...50-50.”

 

“30 and I don’t take my business elsewhere.”

 

“40 percent and I’ll throw in free lap dances and drinks anytime you want for you and your boys.”

 

“Not really my taste but I think we’ve got a deal.”

 

And with that they shake on it both men relaxing slightly now that work was concluded or so Rio thought.

 

“You know if this little venture of ours turns out to be a success I could see us making millions.” Big Tony’s face gets beet red as he gushes like Rio ain't already making millions all over Detroit.

 

The thinner man just hums taking a sip of his mezcal.

 

“There is just one little kink in the machine that could grow into an...issue if we sit on it too long.” 

 

_ ‘Here it comes.'  _ Rio has to work on not rolling his eyes because there’s always some little problem that he’s gotta clean up, every fucking turn he made there was a charity case. 

 

Damn if he don’t got a reputation as a problem solver. 

 

Tony continues unprompted, “About 10 miles down the road is a new club called ‘ _ The Eager Beaver.’  _ can you believe that shit name? How tacky!”

 

Rio wants to tell the man to take a good hard look in the mirror but instead settles for a shrug.

 

“It’s owned by a little shit by the name of Ali Agrero. The kid ain’t even a month off his mother’s tit but thinks he can come into my place and pouch my fuckin talent!” The fat man’s face is turning purple now as he gets angrier and angrier. “He’s got some great great great uncle twice removed that’s got Saudi oil money so he thinks his shit don’t stink.”

 

Big Tony moves closer to Rio and lowers his voice as if the casual chat they’d just had about money laundering was amateur hour, “I’m just saying with Ali out of the picture we’d get more clientele, more talent, we could push more product, and if the opportunity arises I could take over  _ ‘The Beaver’s’ _ lease and we could expand.”

 

He raises his eyebrows in question giving time for Rio to mull it over.

 

“Alright I’ll look into it and see if it’s a priority.” The younger man huffs and downs the rest of the mezcal, “if and only if he becomes a problem will he be taken care of...no sense jumping the gun so to speak.”

 

With that he shuffles out of the booth stretching his legs as a new dancer, dressed like a mermaid  no less, begins her set. When he turns back Big Tony looks confused and a tad distraught that he’s leaving.

 

“I gotta inspect my new investment don’t I?” Rio offers and then curiosity gets the better of him, “I just got a question for you though, that waitress Beth was it? Thing is I got two eyes and I know that if you got a star player like that you don’t bench ‘em”

  
  


It takes Big Tony a full thirty seconds to get his meaning and remember Beth was even there before he clears his throat to explain, “Oh yeah Bethie you’d think that with that body and those tits and the whole Jessica Rabbit thing she’s got going on it’d be a match made in heaven but take it from me the girl has got zero skill when it comes to dancin’. I’m talkin middle school dance level awkward and nobody is gonna pay for a show that only goes up to the knees.”

 

Instead of continuing the conversation Rio steps onto the main floor. It’s around 1:30 and business doesn’t appear to be slowing down with cheers from the crowd as the mermaid finally rips her seashell bra off.

 

Bullet and Carlos both give him a nod to indicate no worries and then silently...gracefully...Rio slips behind a sparkly beaded curtain.

 

**

 

Beth has a side of her that Annie and Ruby affectionately call her ‘mommy mode’ not to say they don’t have it as well it’s just Beth’s is 4x as strong given her number of offspring. It also doesn’t help that her choice in hobbies has always steered more towards the domestic. She wasn’t going to apologize for loving baking, crafting, and mastering the subtle art of sandwich faces but it didn’t stop the blush from forming when Annie teased her either calling her 'Stepford Wife'.

 

Which is why Beth is hunched over the clubs industrial sink in the very back past the dressing rooms and employee bathroom. This sink is meant for the janitorial staff but it suits Beth purposes without half naked women nudging her aside so they can recheck their make-up. Elizabeth Boland is in semi ‘mommy mode’ to hopefully keep her job, which reminds her that she’s got to start the paperwork on switching back to her maiden name.

 

Beth knows that she should be leaving the club soda and salt, kindly procured from Sam to sit overnight so the stickiness can come out without too much fuss. She’s done so a million times for Danny’s favorite white sports jersey and Emma’s penchant to spill grape juice all over it.

 

But Beth is on a bit of a time crunch so instead she’s scrubbing the ever loving shit out of the designer coat and trying to not think about how it probably costs more than her car payment and monthly mortgage combined, god the silk lining feels amazing under her fingers and it smells masculine and spicy underneath the coconut and rum.

 

“I gotta ask is Beth like your for real actual name?”

 

“Oh God!” Beth nearly jumps completely out of her skin and the rough cheap sponge goes flying into the ether of the dark hallway.

 

She spins around to see Big Tony’s would be partner leaning against the opposite wall arms crossed over his chest. He’s taller than she thought and instead of offering an apology for scaring her half to death he simply smirks waiting for her answer.

 

‘ _ Okay beth just play it cool’ _ She takes a breath and fiddles with the labels of his jacket, “Y-Yes it’s Beth...Beth Hill.” She sends an internal personnel thanks to Ruby for allowing the use of her last name, for safety reasons, the closest woman by the name of Beth Hill is an 82 year old who lives in a retirement home near Grosse Pointe and likes her grandson's posts on Facebook. “Why wouldn’t that be my name?”

 

“Sweetheart you know where we standin right?! I would have guessed it was some shit like Porsha or Saffron or somethin.” He explains and Beth has to brush off how him calling her sweetheart makes her knees a little wobbly.

 

“Well Porsha’s next shift isn't until tomorrow so that name’s taken and...you know Saffron isn’t half bad maybe I’ll use that when I make my debut.” Beth jokes biting her lip in faux contemplation.

 

“Yeah well Beth don’t seem to fit you neither.” He shrugs his broad shoulders and glances to the side. “Is it short for something?”

 

“Uhh yeah Elizabeth.”

 

“Elizabeth.” His rough gravelly voice caresses each syllable and there she goes staring at his lips again.

 

“I-I don’t...I mean, what's your name?”  _ smooth real smooth Beth. _

 

“It’s Rio but don’t let just anybody know kay?” His tone is light and teasing. 

 

It hits Beth like a thunderbolt that they’re flirting with each other, she hasn’t flirted with anyone since before Emma was born and admittedly never with anyone other than Dean. The banter she got into with customers was usually one sided and forgotten about the second a fresh dancer came onstage.

 

“Well...Rio...I think your coat is good to go.” She wipes the last bits of salt away and steps closer to hand it over. He takes it casually but spends a moment to pass his calloused thumb across the back of her hand, she can’t repress the shiver that runs up her back.

 

There Beth is looking up into Rio’s dark eyes with her deep ocean blues and it feels like this little moment, this small bubble of time bathed in the hazy red light of the hallway is just for them.

 

* _ ASS ASS ASS ASS ASS _

_ STOP _

_ NOW MAKE THAT MOTHERFUCKER HAMMER TIME* _

 

And just like that the spell is broken when the blaring lyrics of Big Sean come from the newly opened door to their right. Out steps three spandex clad ladies that Beth vaguely recognizes as new hires blasting the music from one of their phones, they giggle and whisper to each other while eyeing Rio up and down before continuing towards the back door.

 

Beth takes a big step back when she sees just how close she and this complete stranger are standing together.

 

“I-I should get back to it and I still gotta deliver Big Tony his drink and I’m sure you’ve got more important things to do.”

 

She watches as he shrugs on his coat patting down the wet spot like he’s got all the time in the world.

 

“Alright but I’ll be in touch so keep your phone on you kay?”

 

Beth furrowers her brows at the question, “Wait why would you be in touch?” 

 

“So I can text you the details for our date on Sunday.” He responds nonchalantly, “Also you shouldn’t answer a question with a question.”

 

Calling Elizabeth gobsmacked would have been an understatement, her painted red mouth hanging open with eyes the size of dinner plates. She wants to ask a million questions but her mind can’t grasp a single one, she also doesn’t want to prove his last statement right.

 

“Hey j-just so you know people like to be given the option to say yes or no when asked out by another person.” Her PTA mom voice slips out as she chastises Rio, the same one she uses when Angie insists that all bakes sale treats be vegan and GMO free.

 

“Why would I do that? I already knew you were gonna say yes.” With that he’s gone.

 

Beth’s left to clear the static from her brain as she tries to sort through what just happened.

“I spill a drink on a handsome stranger, I clean his coat over a dirty sink, I flirt with said handsome stranger...he flirts back. Somehow I’m going on a date now?” Beth mumbles under her breath fitting the pieces together, a smile spreading across her face as she repeats, “I’m going on a date!?”

 

She wants to hop up and down the excitement inside her almost spilling over but something strikes her as odd.

 

“Wait...I didn’t give him my phone number.”

 

***

 

Carlos and Bullet report back to him as soon as he steps back into the main room. Everything seems to be on the up and up at least surface level from what they can tell.

 

“Gather the employee records so we can make sure there ain’t no rotten eggs then we’ll discuss the arrangement back at the warehouse.” Rio’s sure the boys will appreciate the free booze and lap dances part of Big Tony’s offer although maybe not Carlos who’s happily married with kid number two on the way.

 

A loud, annoying, and familiar whoop interrupts the gang leaders thoughts and Rio instantly tracks him out of the corner of his eye, the man who’d smacked Elizabeth’s behind.

 

“You know what I’ll meet you in the car gotta hit the head first.”

 

***

The men’s bathroom at a strip club has to be the most depressing place Rio can imagine and the one for ‘The Pony Palace’ lives up to his expectations.

 

The once glaring white walls are now covered in sharpie with dirty jokes, crude anatomically incorrect drawings, the odd swastika here and there because Big Tony hasn’t repainted since he took over and it’d be a waste of time. The only true decoration is photographs of the various dancers in stages of undress with comments scribbled next to them judging assets and their level of skill.

 

Rio is pleased to see Elizabeth wasn’t in any of the photos.

 

A line of six urinals sit neatly along the south wall all of which are unoccupied except for the one at the very end. So Rio breaks the cardinal rule of any men's restroom and takes the urinal right beside Mr. Slap Happy. Other than the two of them the restroom is completely deserted.

 

From what he can see the guy is so drunk Rio should count himself lucky the fool isn’t pissing on his shoes.

 

He’s got a pudgy soft body from sitting behind a desk all day and the badge hanging from his neck identifies him as Brian it’s right on top of his lime green tie, clip on to be exact. Brian for his part is happily humming some dumb tune he’s clearly made up while resting his free hand on the filthy porcelain, Rio notes the golden band on his ring finger.

 

Finishing up Rio zips his fly and walks to the sink thoroughly washing his hands with soap and water. He prays that the day he doesn’t have to remind Marcus every single time to wash his hands after using the potty comes soon, little monster always seems to just ‘forget.’

 

“You know working in the customer service industry is hard enough as it is.” Rio muses watching the bubbles swirl down the drain as Brian finally clumsily swivels around limp cock in hand.

 

“Sooourry wha? Are you talkin to meee?” 

 

“I mean the long hours, little if any benefits whatsoever, the constant demand to always be happy and polite.” Rio moves to the creaky metallic paper towel dispenser because Big Tony is too cheap to get the more environmentally friendly air blowers grabbing a handful, “But that’s not the worst part, nah the worst part is dealing with shitty customers...like you.”

 

“Lizzen Buddy I don kno wha you talki-” Brian only gets that far when Rio strikes. Shoving the wad of paper in his mouth and grabbing the drunks left hand.

 

He hears the snap of three fingers; the pinky, ring, and middle finger as Brian’s face erupts in muffled agony and he crumples to the dirty floor. Just a simple little trick he’d taught Eddie.

 

“Take this as a lesson in keeping your hands to yourself.” Rio walks out the door and through the club into the cold night air without a backward glance.

 

He’s still got work to do and the night ain’t over.

***

  
  


The rest of Beth shift went by in a blur after getting Big Tony his replacement pina colada and in the end she didn’t get the talking to she was dreading. Apparently someone had gotten hurt in the men’s bathroom and Tony had to talk him out of suing the club.

 

She’d gotten home around 4:30 in the morning and slept until noon. She was used to the lack of sleep after a more than a decade of being a mom, running after snotty toddlers wasn’t all that different from cleaning up messes made by horny drunks. The rest of Saturday went quite smoothly getting a number of errands done, responding to several members of the PTA via email about the spring musical, and talking to both Annie and Ruby so they could finally coordinate a proper girls night something they hadn’t had in a full two months which felt like an eternity.

 

It’s only when she’s on her shift at  _ ‘The Pony’ _ that she remembers her conversation with Rio and only because of a buzzing in her secret uniform pocket. Tony doesn’t like his staff to be on their phones during work but there’s a few dark corners out of his range of vision that allow for it. But Beth has four kids and needs it if there’s ever an emergency and Dean has to get a hold of her.

 

She sets down a flight of jaeger bombs in front of a table of construction workers and slips off to a rather advantageous corner to check her phone.

 

Up on stage one of the new girls named Jasmine is performing to T-Pains’ ‘I’m N Luv (Wit A Stripper).’ It’s an extremely physical routine with lots of twists and twirls around the pole but it feels almost sterile and non-erotic to Beth. The rest of the club seems to share her opinion as most are having side conversations and not really paying attention to the show.

 

It reminds Beth of a conversation she’d had regarding the clubs high turn-over rate with Tatianna, a dancer a few years Beth’s senior who’d been dancing since the late-nineties only a few weeks earlier.

 

_ “It’s this new fangled pole dancing gym trend,” Tatianna explained with her grizzled two pack a day voice, “these girls come in thinking they can do a trick or two with skin and bone bodies and have riches and men fallin’ at their feet. But that ain’t sexy or erotic or entertaining and it’ll get you nothing but out on your ass after a few weeks.” _

 

_ “Oh what does make a stripper into a star?” Beth had asked humoring the experienced dancer while repairing a torn hole in Candies' bejeweled denim show bra. _

 

_ “You gotta be creative when out there and know your body, after that the rest comes naturally.” The old woman went on taking a long swig of whiskey, “And most of all if you can get every man out there thinking you’re dancin just for him and him alone well then it’s smooth sailin from there baby.” _

 

The phone buzzes again in her pocket and she reads the text from an unknown number.

 

* _ How do you feel about sushi?* _

 

_ *Oh so now you’re asking for my opinion on something.* _

 

_ *That a yes or no on sushi? Also again I knew you’d say yes.* _

 

She bites her lip to suppress a grin.

 

_ *I love sushi...also how’d you get my number???* _

 

_ *Now that I’m the boss gotta make sure all my employees are legit.* _

 

_ *I’m pretty sure this is a violation of my employee rights.* _

 

_ *You gonna call Michigan Labor on me Red?* _

 

_ *It's better be really excellent sushi.* _

 

**_SMASH_ **

 

Beth looks up to see that Jasmine has attempted to do a double front flip off the stage and managed to send a table top full of drinks to the floor splashing everyone within a five foot radius.

 

“BETH!”

 

_ *g2g work never stops* _

 

_ *Tell me about it, I’m pick you up... your place 8pm sharp.* _

 

_ *Did you find out my address from my file too?* _

 

_ *Nah text it to me tomorrow.* _

 

_ *Alright one last question.* _

 

“BETH! Get over here!”

 

“One second!” She called back still staring at the three moving dots.

 

_ *Last. Question.* _

 

_ *Is it more formal or casual?* _

 

Beth gets a chance to look at her phone at the end of the night and sees that Rio had never responded so she was just going to assume that meant she had free reign. She’d gone to bed knowing that one of the girls was covering her shift and she had a free day with no kids or work on Sunday

 

***

 

She’d woken up in a panic the next morning with the realization that Elizabeth Boland hadn’t been on a first date since she was Elizabeth Marks some twenty years ago. She’d ended up stress cleaning her house from top to bottom while a million and one questions and scenarios raced through her brain each one worse than the last.

  
  


‘ _ Why would he be interested in you Beth? He’s younger and if his clothes are anything to go by richer plus the way Big Tony sucked up to him.’ _

 

_ ‘Maybe this is more of a ‘getting to know your lowly worker dinner’...at a sushi restaurant...alone.’ _

 

_ ‘Maybe he thinks I’m easy cause he met me at a strip club and he’s just working his way through the waitresses then the dancers one at a time.” _

 

_ ‘Or he’s looking for a mistress and wants to see just who has low enough morals and is skanky enough to be his little side piece. If she’d willingly crawl under the table if his wife walked in the room.’ _

 

She sips on a couple fingers of bourbon and moves on to stress baking. She makes around a dozen almond toffee cupcakes before seeing that she’s got around three hours to get ready, plenty of time if you’re a normal person but it feels like so little for Beth who’s been out of the dating pool for half her life.

 

In the shower she contemplates if she should use her regular everyday soap or the expensive pomegranate infused with pearl body wash, the one she reserves for special occasions. She can’t do the whole debate about shaving her upper thighs and between her legs because it’s a given for the uniform she wears to work.

 

She finally decides to use the expensive soap but maintains that she’ll be perfectly chaste on the first date. The very thought of moving so fast makes her nervous no matter how handsome Rio is, the only thing that’s warmed her bed recently has been her vibrator. She even doubles down on this promise by selecting a plain white bra and panty set skipping over her more exotic lingerie. 

 

She gets out of the shower and then it’s on to the next daunting challenge as she stands before her closet in a damp towel, deciding on what to wear over her undergarments. 

 

Should she subvert expectations and go for full mom like she does during the week? There’s a particularly brand new maroon sweater she’d recently got on sale at The Gap and pairing that with a simple off white skirt might be nice. But Beth quickly tosses the outfit aside it’s too pedestrian and definitely not first date material.

 

Maybe she should keep it simple a nice blouse with jeans and boots to match. Again that goes in the reject pile because nothing Beth saw Rio that night with her own two eyes suggested low effort; she’s gotta put some work into this, this wasn't going to Olive Garden with Dean for unlimited bread sticks.

 

God Beth wishes Ruby and Annie were here to help.

 

She finally reaches into the back of her closet and pulls out a red polka dotted dress that she hasn’t worn in forever. Beth had gotten it when she’d chosen to work at the dealership to put on airs of being a professional and also to show what Dean was missing when she still cared about that type of thing. It’d gone back in the closet when she’d quit and traded business casual for bunny suit.

 

The waist cinched as just the right place to compliment the sway of her hourglass figure and one button done up it was perfectly professional and momish but one button undone exposed a creamy expanse of cleavage that felt on the very precipice of too much. She left the button done up...for now.

 

Make up was kept simple none of the heavy smokey cat eye with deep ruby lips that  _ ‘The Pony’  _ demanded. Curling her hair until it's bouncy and soft take all of ten minutes, maybe she should start growing it out again.

 

But she still has an hour.

 

So she takes the advice of the girls at the club that when they start stressing about something they simply practice their routine.

 

Every six months Big Tony holds an open casting call for new talent to make up for the fly by night dancers that Tatianna hates. Beth understands that she’s making alright money as a cocktail waitress right now but with the cash dancers get, Beth could with careful planning pay off the two extra mortgages and afford a little nest egg until she could get into a more legitimate line of work. She could crawl out of the hole her soon to be ex had gotten her family into and finally be free.

 

She’s learned a lot in her half a year at  _ ‘The Pony Palace’  _ like how a front clasp on a bra is infinitely sexier than the usual back clasp. A little concealer and setting powder can make the stretch marks on her legs disappear which makes Beth feel a tad bit bad they’re the marks of her children after all. The champagne rooms have the same no touching rule that the main floor maintains unless a certain price is met, Beth swore to herself plus Annie and Ruby (the only two outsiders who know her real job) that her price is a million bajillion never gonna happen dollars.

 

Strolling to the over priced sound system that Dean had bought years ago Beth synced her phone up and hit play before turning to her audience of one.

 

“Alright Buddy now you have to give me your honest opinion alright?” She orders as the attentive golden retriever thumps his tail against the floor.

 

Truthfully Buddy had been the one and only observer to these little performances over the past couple months as Beth tried to figure out what kind of dancer she was. Not the bombastic kind that Carmen was with twerking and the risk of throwing her back out or twisting around the pole that appeared so popular but was more flash than quality.

 

The song she was dancing to at the moment was rhythmic and sensual creating an almost dream like state moving her body in time to the beat. It helps that she can’t understand anything the female singer is saying. Turning in slow circles with her arms held above her head Beth feels the paranoia finally seep from her body.

 

Beth’s hands travel down her throat over her generous bust, across her torso, down her quivering legs until they reach the hard wood floor. Then they move back up slowly taking with them the ends of her dress, past her pale calves and exposing her thighs to the open air. She’s just about to bunch the soft fabric to the apex of her panties-

 

“I didn’t think this is what night auditing entailed?” Dean’s voice cuts through the cloud Beth’s formed in her mind.

 

“Jesus Christ Dean!” Beth yells moving so that every part of her is covered up and racing across the room to turn off the music as Buddy runs past the former master of the house to pee in the backyard, “I thought we agreed no coming over unannounced unless it's an emergency.”

 

“Yeah well Kenny forgot his swim bag and I thought I’d drop by while the kids were at my mom’s to get it.” Dean gestures to the black duffel in his hands that Beth remembers packing herself and reminding her oldest twice to take with him just another way Kenny was secretly plotting to get his mother and father to send time together. Beth felt bad that it was a fruitless endeavor on her son’s part.

 

“I-I’ve been taking some dance classes on the weekends like an hour or so before going into work for the exercise.” Beth explains trying to keep up the lie that she’s told Dean all those months ago when he’d questioned how she was staying afloat aka not asking/begging him for an allowance. She’d explained that she was night auditing at a hotel not too far from  _ ‘The Pony Palace’  _ knowing that Dean would make custody a thousand percent harder if he knew she worked at a strip club, didn’t matter if she scrubbed the gum under the tables or ran the entire damn thing.

 

Dean sets the swim bag on the counter top and takes a seat at one of the bar stools, “I thought we could talk about...us.”

 

“What’s there to talk about? All you’ve got to do is sign the papers and we can negotiate terms with the kids if you want more time with them.” She’s blunt in a way that grinds against her natural hostess but Dean didn’t deserve that type of special treatment, “Also Kenny forgetting his swim bag isn’t an emergency.”

 

“I was thinking it might be best if I come back home...for the kids sake.” They’d had this conversation a thousand times and he still wasn’t listening.

 

“The kids are just getting used to us not being under the same roof, it’s been six months why confuse them even more by going backwards.” Beth moves to search the cabinates for an appropriate Tupperware container to put the cupcakes in.

 

“It’d be best for them if they see us as a team working on our marriage together.” Dean moves to pour himself a glass of water because of course he knows where the glasses are still familiar with the household. A small petty part of her considers rearranging the kitchen to knock him off his game next time he visits.

 

“Tell me Dean have you stopped screwing Amber?” Beth asks so tired of beating around the bush.

 

“...”

 

“I thought not and honestly if you had stopped seeing her I don’t think my answer would be any different.” She hands him the covered cupcakes with a note attached saying only one after dinner for each kid. “We make an alright team right now with you at your place and me here and I think it should stay that way.”

 

“I don’t want to just be  **alright** Bethie. I want us to be a family again...I want us to be happy.” And she looks up into Dean’s green eyes, the color he’d passed down to Jane and Kenny, and tries to conjure up the same emotions she’d felt years ago on their wedding day surrounded by friends and family but there’s nothing. 

 

“I wasn’t happy for a very long time Dean and I think the cheating and debt and lies finally woke me up to that fact.” Beth bites her tongue before she thanks him for opening her eyes and Dean looks like he wants to argue further but is interrupted by the doorbell.

 

“Expecting someone?” Dean’s voice is almost accusatory and Beth suppresses an unladylike snort as she gives herself a once over in the foyer mirror. 

 

“Yeah I-I’ve got a date,” She rubs her lips together to even out her lipstick before being satisfied with her appearance, “So you should probably go out the back to avoid any awkwardness.”

 

She half turns to him with a raised perfectly plucked brow and sees a myriad of emotions overtake Dean. Shock and confusion then jealousy and anger are the most prominent mixed in with a little bit of self pity as he glares at the still closed front door which rings again.

 

Beth understands she should be relishing this moment, this is what every scorned wife should dream of, the chance to finally get a one up on the philandering husband. A real ‘ _ you got yours buddy now I’m getting mine’  _ like something out of an old black and white film.

 

Instead Beth is just annoyed that he’s still standing there.

 

“Dean, go.” With that he’s out the back door with Kenny’s swim bag and out of her thoughts.

 

The doorbell rings a third time and Beth takes a calming breath suddenly the worries that have been plaguing her all day have vanished and she opens the door.

 

“Hi! Sorry just got a little caught up in getting ready.” There he is on her front step in a navy button up and black jeans, a familiar pea coat over everything. 

 

‘ _ How can one person be so gorgeous without even trying?’  _ Beth wonders noting Rio’s own heated stare traveling up and down her body, maybe she should have undone the top button of her dress after all.

 

Funny that a few minutes ago Dean had walked in on her about to shimmy out of her panties and all he’d been able to do was crack a joke about her fake job. Rio was looking at her fully clothed like she’d walked out the door in her birthday suit, it felt incredible and terrifying. 

 

“It’s fine I’m patient.” Rio states the porch light catching the eagle across his neck at just the right angle and Beth imagines pressing her lips to it.

 

“Yeah well that makes one of us.” The redhead coughs and locks the door so she doesn’t turn into a gawking idiot like last time.

 

“Patience is a virtue but sushi reservations wait for no man so come on ma.” He offers the elbow of his arm and without hesitating she takes it.

 

She feels a small spark deep inside her grow that matches the heat radiating off him where they connect.

  
_ ‘It’s the start of something’  _ Beth thinks letting Rio lead her to his car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this chapter is even longer than the last and I swore to myself I'd have it out on Sunday but better late than never. I want to thank everyone for the kudos and comments they mean so much please keep them coming.
> 
> I had to include a hand breaking scene after the suggestion by amandabarnes. So thanks for that also a big thanks to Jhill88 for providing a bunch of stripper songs two of which I included in this chapter.
> 
> I have to say I love writing dadRio, angryRio, businessRio, flirtyRio, and pretty much every type of Rio, if I was capable I'd even write darkRio but I'm too much of a marshmallow. I also love writing cuteBeth, momBeth, and most important Boss Bitch Beth.
> 
> If anyone would like to know the song Beth is dancing to it's 'Tártaro' by Buscabulla which I highly recommend if you just want to chill but like sexy chill.
> 
> I included a firefly reference so whoever spots it gets a million brownie points!
> 
> Thanks again for reading!!!


	3. Operation: Dragon Roll

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Date Night

Beth has been to sushi numerous times since the japanese cuisine became popular in Detroit outside of its small japan town. The kids still found the idea of raw fish and seaweed gross and mostly ordered chicken teriyaki while Dean had humored her but never strayed further than the pedestrian California roll. During a dinner date in one of their better years she’d dared Dean to try the wasabi as a silly joke but it’d ended with him puking his guts out on the curb outside Mioki’s, that was the last time they’d gone to sushi as a couple.

 

Luckily Annie and Ruby were always up to multiple shared rolls and sipping hot sake while they complained about their week or ragged on the latest episode of Housewives. Ruby would make a comment that Indian was still her absolute favorite and Annie would point out that there was nothing as heavenly as 2am burgers and fries after a night out drinking.

So it was safe to say that Beth liked sushi but the place Rio had brought her to was a far cry from Mioki’s, the little hole in the wall fifteen minutes from her house.

The tall vaulted walls and ceilings made the entire place feel enormous covered in gunmetal gray steel and shiny black onyx slate. The only pop of color coming from the fish tank that wrapped around the room filled to the brim with a wide variety of fish in every shade of the rainbow.

It would only fit that the clientele of such a sleek posh place would match. The room was crowded with twenty and thirty somethings who looked like they stepped off the cover of GQ with a majority congregated around the elaborate bar in the middle of the room. The women wearing impossibly short dresses showing off their long, tan legs and the men flashing bundles of cash and gold watches to impress the women.

 

“Elizabeth...come on.” Rio’s voice bring’s her back to reality and she flushes at being caught gawking. She can’t believe that not two hours earlier she’d thought her simple polka dot dress was too much, now it felt like not nearly enough.

 

Following his lead to a small two person table covered with crisp white linen she thanked the waiter for pulling out her chair. Beth finally gets her hands on the menu and sees the name of the place, the front windows only decorated with Kanji Beth couldn’t possibly try understand.

 

_ ‘ _ _ Jōhinde shisso _ _ ’ _

And like the outside the menu is equally indecipherable and Beth swiftly gives up setting the menu to the side.

 

“I’m gonna guess that my usual dragon roll isn’t an option?” That earns her a gruff chuckle that Beth finds she likes the sound of.

 

“Sorry darlin’ this here is one of those joints where the chef makes the food and we gotta eat what’s in front of us.”

 

“Yeah but what if they serve us something really gross like the bladder of an eel or shark testicles?” she whispers the last part as one of the waitstaff gets a little too close. 

 

“Well then I’ll have to go into the back and have a polite chat with the chef so you’ll get your dragon roll.” He winks at her and flags down the waiter for their drink order.

 

“Please and let you hog all the delicious shark balls for yourself.” This time he laughs out loud not trying to hide behind his nonchalant act.

 

Their drinks come, a mezcal for him and a bourbon neat for her, he teases her about looking more like a rosé kind of lady. She shoots back that  rosé’s taste like stale cigarettes and regret which she gets more than enough of at ‘The Pony’ and also to never call her lady again.

 

Their first course comes out, a single piece for yellowtail nigiri for each of them and Beth has to admit that it’s some of the freshest fish she’s ever had and it’s replaced by the second course, the waiters here are very good.

 

“Can I ask you something?”She watches as he places fatty tuna a few shades darker than her lipstick in his mouth, taking his time to savor the flavor.

 

“I get the feeling if I said no you’d ask anyway.”His words lack any bite and he folds his large hands on the table as their plates are taken away and replaced with the third course, a dainty pile of seaweed salad with gold flakes on top.

 

“I’m just wondering why you asked-well ordered me out is all?” And suddenly all her insecurities and doubts about going on this date come back to her. Under the table she crosses and uncrosses her legs to work off some of the nervous energy, not as bad as Stan’s bouncy leg but still close.

 

Again just like the dark hallway his gaze is focused as Rio mulls her question over and on the outside Beth’s the picture of patience sipping her bourbon and munching on the cold gummy salad. On the inside she’s about to burst with a thousand confessions that totally won’t make her look like a crazy person on her first date in two decades.

 

That even though she works at a seedy strip club and has been practicing for months, the thought of actually getting up on stage and taking her clothes off for strangers makes her queasy and wanting to hop on the next flight to Iceland to get as far away as possible.

That the only man she’s ever been with cheated on her with a younger blonde with hardly enough brains to fill her B-cup bra.

That the last time she’d been intimate with anyone was five long years ago and resulted in her youngest Jane.

That she was the mother of four children.

 

Instead she says nothing and waits, she can be chill, super-duper-chill.

 

“My line of work people are always coming to me, expecting me to clean up their mistakes, and more often than not they don’t even acknowledge that they made a mistake to begin with.” He takes a long drag from his mezcal and Beth matches him. “The drink spilling even though it technically wasn’t your fault, you still cleaned it up darlin’.”

 

They finish their drinks at the same time and as if by magic new ones are set beside them a second later. The last for the night, they still have to drive home after all. Beth hides her smile behind the rim of her glass as the strong liquor warms her from the inside although she assumes it’s the alcohol giving her the light bubbly feeling.

 

“Plus I got a thing for redheads in bunny outfits.” This confession almost causes Beth to spit take across the room though at the last second she covers it with her arm dissolving into a coughing fit, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. 

 

_ ‘Smug son of a bitch’  _ She thinks watching Rio lean back all smug, she wants nothing more than to wipe the smirk off his pretty face to watch the adams apple under that eagle tattoo gulp.

 

“I was just thinking there’s lots of pretty girls at the club and you’re a handsome guy.” She’s gotta lay it on thick but not too thick, “I’m sure you could take your pick if you came back to the dressing room.” Internally she apologizes to the girls for talking about them like pieces of meat.

 

“Yeah well it takes more than a spin around the pole set to Poison to catch my attention.” The fourth course arrives, seared unagi topped with a small dollop of spicy aioli and salmon roe.

 

“You must have seen Carmen’s performance, she’s the current favorite given her talent for...twerking.” The word feels so silly and juvenile in her mouth.

 

“Shaking your ass in time to bass feels a little one note to me.” He places his hand over his heart and puts on a playful face, “Oh sorry maybe I should say it’s more like a ‘one trick pony.’”

 

“What about Candy, tall leggy blonde with pink highlights in her hair.” Beth’s not giving up that easily, “She can put both legs behind her head.”

 

“Sounds like something out of the exorcist.” Still he’s not interested.

 

“But you don’t even know about Delilah, a tiny Korean girl who has this one trick with a ping pong ball and a kazoo-”

 

“Why are you doing this Elizabeth?” Rio’s blunt question hits her like a ton of bricks and it takes her a few moments to gather her thoughts.

 

“I-I don’t understand...I m-mean what do you think I’m doing?” She blinks several times while he just leans forward to study her closer. The boisterous crowded restaurant becomes muffled around them and she leans closer as well.

 

“I just don’t get why you’re telling me about all these different girls when I’m out with you.” He sighs and it’s not the reaction Beth was thinking of when she started this conversation.

 

“I’m just saying that you could date anyone you wanted to, there’s no shortage of pretty young dancers at ‘The Pony Palace’” Beth fidgets in her seat and confesses, “I’m just not getting why you’d take a lowly cocktail waitress to a fancy place like this...why show any interest at all?”

 

“You’re right if I wanted a twerk queen or a contortionist I could have asked them here tonight easily.” He reaches up and brushes a stray lock of hair away from her check and Beth can’t help the fluttering of her eyelids, “But I wanted to spend time with a smart, beautiful, funny as hell woman...how can you not see that’s you Elizabeth?”

 

One second Beth was breathing normally, a little labored given her dates intense good looks but now it felt like all the air had vacated her lungs. Her self esteem had been bottom of the barrel when she’d learned about Dean and Amber and it’d only sunk lower after his other affairs came to light. Brick by brick she’d been slowly building herself back up helped along by Annie and Ruby and her job at ‘The Pony’ that provided at least a little financial independence. This question from Rio, a man she barely knew, makes her see suddenly just have far she has to go.

 

“And lastly dessert is a green tea lavender infused sorbet accented with dehydrated Hawaiian pineapple.” The over eager waiter who’d speedily provided each course was no different this time, ignoring the couple inches apart from each other and setting down the fine china dish complete with two spoons.

 

Beth has a number of avenues she could take in this situation. 

 

She could act all offended, crying out that he didn’t know her, storm out and get an Uber home. Chug the vodka she’s got in the back of the freezer and then swear she’s giving up on dating for good, she’ll dance under the moniker ‘The Celibate Stripper’ that’ll get the big bucks rolling in.

Or She could go for the total denial route in which she’ll crack a joke, change the subject, and avoid Rio’s texts after tonight. If he comes back to the club to check on his investment she’ll just duck into the janitors closet, Beth’s done it before when the husband’s of PTA mom’s show up on $20 lapdance night.

Beth could even go batshit insane and jump into the restraunts giant fish tank and slash around like she’s the mermaid queen of sushi in front of all the instagram models and investment bankers. Guys really only went for crazy hotties when they were under twenty five.

 

Or she could take a leap of faith.

 

“Alright..truth?” Beth takes a bite of the green and purple swirl sorbet, it’s an explosion of flavor on her tongue and he mirrors her while nodding for Beth to go on.

“I haven’t been on a date in forever and I guess I’ve been overthinking it all day so I clung to only thing we have in common which is  _ ‘The Pony.’  _ Beth explains shrugging her shoulders as if to signal that she knew it was a poor excuse but the only one she had.

“You told me ‘truth’ darlin’ and I can’t believe guys aren’t lining up outside that strip club to take you out.” He smiles wide showing straight white teeth and creases form at the corners of his dark eyes, maybe she’d been wrong in thinking he was so much younger than herself.

“Yes well you’ve seen the types that come to the club,” He had even broken the hand of one of them, although she didn’t need to know that. “and the only semi-decent ones are already in love with the dancers like Carmen, The Twerk Queen. Also I have responsibilities outside of work...four to be accurate.”

His brow quirks and he only needs a split second to think about it, “What’s their names?”

“Kenny, Danny, Emma, and Jane.” 

“Hmmm.” He finishes off the last of the desert, she’d only had a few bites but Beth’s got a feeling Rio has a major sweet tooth despite his lean physique. “I’ve got a responsibility too just the one though.”

 

“Oh yeah what’s their name?” 

 

“Marcus.” His smile grows wider when he says his son’s name.

 

From there the conversation flows easier now that they could talk about something other than the strip club. Now they had at the very least two things in common well her four to his one but still semantics.

Chatting about how neither of them could keep track of which dog was which on Paw Patrol, how Beth’s youngest had this deep ancient feud with wearing pants, Marcus had learned the f-word from someone at school and Rio had only found out about that after the little guy had dropped a full cereal bowl on his leather couch. Both lamented over the thought of the teenage years, the crowded bar had never looked so tempting.

 

Something slightly odd did happen as they were making their way out of the restaurant at least in Beth’s opinion.

A man approached Rio and greeted him like they were old friends with a firm close handshake and whispered words in each other’s ears. The man clearly of Japanese descent was shorter than her Latino date but stockier as if it would take several men to even think of knocking him over.

The thing that stood out the most was underneath the newcomers sport coat he wore no shirt at all instead his entire bare chest was on display and it was absolutely covered in red and black swirling cloud tattoos with a terrifying horned troll like creature smack dab in the middle, rows of sharp teeth and red tongue sticking out at her.

 

Beth forces herself to look away not wanting to appear rude and the exchange between the two men is over in seconds. They return to his cadillac and start making their way back to hers.

 

“Come on ma I can practically feel you squirming in your seat.”His dark eyes flick to her before settling on the road again, “If you wanna ask something just ask…”

“Just wondering what kind of business you're into...I mean besides investing with Big Tony.” She calmly states watching the dark cityscape morph back into quiet suburbia.

“I like to diversify, gotta have a large portfolio of which your work is a small portion. The guy back there owns the place and I came in as a minor partner.” Rio is nonchalant about it but she’s getting close to the surface of his empire and waits for her to ask for more information but she never does.

The rest of the ride is in comfortable silence.

Like the gentleman that he is, Rio walks Elizabeth to her front door.

“Well...goodnight.” Beth says digging around in her purse for her keys that have somehow transported to an unknown dimension, it’d be easier to find them if she could take her eyes off the man in front of her.

“Goodnight.” He repeats but his feet remain planted firmly on her front porch.

“Night…” She stops rummaging and steps closer into his space, blues eyes flicking down to his mouth.

“Night.” He whispers down at her and she didn’t think it was possible for his voice to get rougher the sound going straight to the apex of her thighs.

 

_ ‘Oh fuck it!’ _ is the last coherent thought that goes through Beth’s mind as she grabs the back of Rio’s neck and drags his face down to meet hers. He doesn’t even have the good grace to act surprised the smug bastard.

His scent is overwhelming with hints of spice and steel. Beth can still taste the pineapple from the sorbet on his tongue and her fingernails dig deeper into the close cropped hair on the back of his head causing him to groan and his own large hands move from her hips over her ribcage Beth’s heart beating rapidly underneath. One of his hands settles there his thumb just barely brushing the underside of her breast the other continues past her flushed neck before grasping a handful of strawberry hair, a sharp tug of the locks causing Beth head to snap back and a rather loud whimper to escape her throat. The same pale throat Rio is currently working his way down with small love bites.

 

Screw the unsexy white bra and panty set she thought would protect her from crossing a line, screw the Philman’s across the street who were probably watching the show from their bay window, and screw the need to take this slow.

She needs this man in her bed and she needs him there right now!

 

“N-n-nig...nigggghttt” Her breath is labored as she’s trying to get the word ‘nightcap’ out as if she can salvage this invitation to fuck her brains out with some false modesty.

 

The digging of solid wood into Beth’s back makes her question just how he got her pressed up against the front door and she decidedly doesn’t remember curling her left leg around his waist but there it is making more room for his solid frame to press in between her thighs.

 

His mouth opens to answer and even though she knows what he’ll say Beth wants to hear it, she needs to hear his voice if only so the timber of it will make her toes curl.

_ *beep beep*  _

A short vibrating against her inner thigh takes a good three seconds for her mind to process that it’s coming from his coat pocket. She can see the internal struggle behind his eyes and Beth wants to urge him to ignore it with her own look.

 

_ *beep beep* _

_ *beep beep* _

_ *beep beep* _

 

Three in a row so definitely not a casual text. With a frustrated curse he breaks away from her and pulls out the extremely annoying phone quickly reading over the messages.

The lack of his consuming body heat lets the cold night air in and clears Beth head enough that it dawns on her what a massive mistake she was moments away from making. She feels a full body flush that’s equal parts arousal and embarrassment, it’s never been like her to just throw herself at a man, no matter how sexy...and smart...and enticing they were. It especially didn't matter if said man had deep chocolate eyes...bronze skin...and a body that was deceptively muscular.

 

“I got a work emergency so unfortunately I have to go.” Rio steps back from her with great reluctance but like last time his feet don’t move toward his car parked on the curb.

“Oh okay I-I understand...it really was a great time while it lasted.” Beth bends down to retrieve her purse and keys, the latter of which have returned from the unknown dimension to land on her welcome matt. She does see Rio sneak a peek down the front of her dress when she does and Beth is amused rather than annoyed.

“Elizabeth I’ll be in touch.” And with that he turns on his heels and walks casually to his car like he hadn’t been ravishing her against her house a solid minute ago. He does get points for waiting until she’s safely inside before driving off though.

 

***

 

Rio wasn’t ticked off, he wasn’t pissed either, even angry seemed too small of a word for what he was right now.

No, Rio was fucking furious.

Instead of being in a nice big comfy bed thrusting inside Elizabeth’s curvy body with her soft creamy skin pressed against him and losing himself in her huge tits while she whimpered and moaned beneath him, Rio was here.

Here being squished between Bullet and Eddie at a shitty table in  _ ‘The Eager Beaver’ _ and even though he was a loyal man, Bullet’s tits aren’t a fraction as nice as Elizabeth’s. __

He’d been a hair's breadth away from sayin’  _ ‘Fuck it’ _ and ingoring everything but the woman in his arms until the morning but on Friday night when he’d sent Bullet and Eddie to stake out the ‘ _ Beaver’  _ and more specifically it’s owner he’d ordered them to text him when they saw an opening no matter what.

 

**Man fuck past Rio!**

 

“Want a dance?” A girl in not much more than a g-string and mesh crop top swings up to the trio the offer punctuated by a nasty wet cough into her elbow, Rio can see the needle marks on her arm under the eerie green glow of the club lights.

“How old are you darlin’?”

“19” An obvious lie, the girl before him has slapped on layers of heavy stage make-up and couldn’t weigh more than ninety pounds but just a tiny bit of baby fat is still clinging to her cheeks.

Rio pulls a fresh hundred from his wallet and presents it to her but pulls it back when she goes to grab it. “You gonna take this money, get you something proper to eat, and then you’re gonna call your parents and have them come pick you up...probably worried about your ass. I don’t want to see you in this club again.”

“Who the fuck do you think you are?!?” Her voice is indignant and screechy but it’s drowned out by French Montana’s  _ ‘Pop That’  _ blasting through the speakers at least  _ ‘The Pony’s’  _ noise level allowed Rio to think clearly.

 

“I’m the new owner of this club.” At that the stripper gives a frightened wide eyed look and rushes to the employee exit as fast as her six inch heels will carry her but not before snatching the cash.

“You know she’s just gonna use that to score right?” Bullet questions even though he already knows Rio’s answer and Eddie snickers into his gin and tonic.

“At least I can say that I tried.” But he pushes thoughts of the young junky from his mind to focus on the task at hand, the reason he’d been cock blocked in the first place. “What is it that I need to see?”

“Oh he and his bros will be back annny minute...they’re probably pulling up from their coke run right now.” Eddie pipes up and just like that the main double doors of the club slam open allowing for the grand entrance of its owner, Ali Agrero.

Rio didn’t want to give the man too much credit but Big Tony had been correct in categorizing ‘The Eager Beaver’ as a tacky dump, not that ‘The Pony Palace’ was too far behind but at least the Pony had nostalgia and a reputation behind it. 

 

The Beaver reeked of new age trash.

 

Which mostly meant louder music, somehow an even more irritating dj, and dancers who gave the bare minimum in their performances even when baring it all. It was safe to assume almost all of the strippers were cut from the same cloth as the one who offered a lap dance earlier. 

The absolute worst part was the clientele though. The Pony had all types walking in and out from blue collar to white, people from all different backgrounds who just wanted to see some T&A, sure there were a few bad eggs like the one Rio’d left on the bathroom floor but overall pretty okay. The Beaver’s patron’s were of a kind that some of Rio tougher guys wouldn’t look out of place, most were isolated with their drinks and the no touching policy here was either blatantly ignored or didn’t exist.

It’s only fair that the Beaver’s owner be as equally trashy.

Ali Agrero is a small man standing only about 5’6 who wears a white linen tracksuit that looks at least two sizes too big for his frame, around his skinny neck is a multitude of white gold chains one has a large pendent of a diamond encrusted ‘A’ dangling from the end. Big Tony been right on the money when he’d mentioned Agrero being young, the kid didn’t look older than twenty six but Rio failed to see any saudi features that would lend to having enough clout to own a strip joint at such a young age. Then again Rio had been a similar age when he’d started rapidly climbing the ranks to build his own empire.

 

Ali did have two distinctive features that set him out from the crowd, one being that he was completely bald, the lights from the ceiling bouncing off his shiny dome and two the poor bastard had a gigantic mole located high on his left cheek, talking Texas sized with three wiry black hairs sprouting from it.

 

Ali strolled through the main floor and took up a seat in a roped off vip section with his entourage, more like scrawny lackeys in black tracksuits. In a coordinated and practiced move they each pulled handguns from the back of their track pants, glocks from what Rio could tell this far away. A kilo of coke was also placed in the middle and promptly cut open with a butterfly knife.

 

“It’s been like this all weekend...they sit at that table and snort or smoke or drink while fondling the strippers and pointing their guns at anyone who looks at them funny.” Eddie supplies draining the last of his cocktail and Bullet takes over.

 

“And every evening like clockwork a cop comes by and takes a duffle bag from under the table, no doubt a bribe...he stopped by earlier before the coke run”

 

“Recognize the cop?”

 

“Yeah O’Donnel.” Rio knows the name and face, O’Donnel’s a corrupt vice cop that the gang leader has paid off a few times. Probably why this place hasn’t been raided for the open drugs, blatant weapons, and the underage girls. 

“How you wanna handle this boss?”

“I was thinking about starting with a simple _ ‘Hello’  _ ” Rio stands from the table and the other two follow his lead striding over to Ali, currently railing a line.

 

***

Was it terribly cliche of Beth that the moment she’d closed and locked her front door she’d slid back pressed against the wood to the floor all while letting out a deep, dreamy sigh? The answer was yes terribly terribly cliche but she’d still done it.

Once upon a very long time ago she’d sighed similarly for Dean after a romantic date at Dairy Queen when he’d been the senior football player who could do no wrong to her nerdy sophomore self, he’d promised her a stable idyllic life. Rio had only promised he’d be in touch but still there they were, butterflies in her stomach.

And maybe something more grown up as Beth feels an aching heat between her thighs, she’d been so wrapped up in Rio that her own arousal snuck up on her.

 

But now reaching with delicate fingers past the flowing ends of her dress to her white cotton covered center, Beth lets out a strained grasp when she feels just how wet she is.

“Oh fuuuck!” Her blues eyes roll to the back of her head because the friction from her fingers and the fabric on her most sensitive area is heavenly, she swears Rio’s button fly was millimeters from pressing against her moments ago. Her lust fogged mind briefly wonders if she should head to the bedroom and grab her vibrator but it’s just much too far. The hand not in her panties has a death grip on Buddy’s leash hanging from a hook by the door.

After several minutes Beth needs more so she shimmies out of her drenched panties until their around her ankles and unbuttons that one scandalous button on her dress and then another. It’s a relief to pinch and roll her hard rosie nipple between her fingers sending even more shocks throughout her body.

Her other hand finally makes contact with her bare womanhood and Beth lets out an echoing keen into the empty house because it’s all too easy to slide one finger than another inside her hot passage. With her thumb paying close attention to her clit it’s not long until she’s cumming, her head hitting the door and back arching while chasing the aftershocks of her orgasm. 

Beth blinks a few times to clear her head but nothing can wipe the stupid smile from her face. It’s perhaps the best orgasm she’s had in months if not years, no machine interference required. 

Truth be told the entire time she’d been imagining Rio’s much larger fingers pleasuring her, his rough hands groping her breasts, and his lips cutting off her wanton moans and gasps.

A buzzing from her purse, flung over by the living room couch makes Beth perk up a tiny bit though her legs are still mostly jelly so she crawls on hands and knees to get her phone. The bright screen lights up with a single text.

_ *Word around F&F is that a certain redhead at The Pony hooked up w/ a major hottie w/ a NECK TAT!!!🍆🍆🍆---Annie* _

Another ping and Beth sees that it’s in the group chat.

*WAIT WAAAATTT!?!?😲---Ruby*

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I've finally earned my E rating still part of me can't believe I interrupted them twice in this chapter, I gotta stop doing that lol. Also I gave Rio vague ties to the Yakuza, I figure he knows pretty much every major gang in Detroit. I'm also sorry for body shaming Bullet. Also next chapter will have a lot more Ruby and Annie, writing the girls interactions is gonna be so much fun.
> 
> So let me know what you think, forgive any mistakes, kudos, share, and enjoy the 4th if you're in America and your weekend if you're not.


	4. Let The Joint Breath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beth tells the girls about Rio and dances for an unexpected guest.

Apparently Candy’s on and off again boyfriend has a second cousin(twice removed) whose step-son works part time as a shelf stocker at Frugal while dragging his feet to get his GED and smoking his body weight in weed.

It’s no wonder Annie finds out as fast as she does.

“Nothing happened!” Beth cries out that Thursday at their long postponed girls night, they’d only made it through half an episode of Drag Race before Beth can’t stand the weight of their eager stares.

Ruby just lifts an eyebrow while sipping her wine, she’s still pretty much in the dark but her entire being radiates an energy of needing that Tea although she’s trying to play it off.

Annie on the other hand has her arms crossed over her chest and the same haughty look on her face that she’d mastered when she was five years old and Beth wouldn’t let her steal Twinkies from the corner store.

“Well rumor has it that there was some serious eye-fucking going on in the back room of a strip club. That he was naked from the waist down and that you were caressing this giant tattoo on his neck of like a puma or wolf or something.”

“First of all I spilled a drink on his jacket so he stayed full clothed the entire time and it’s an eagle or a hawk.” She just wants to clarify, “Also we just talked there was no caressing or eye-fucking of any kind.”  _ okay the latter part may have been a little fib. _

“Mmhmm and was it just general chit-chat when you went out for sushi too?”

“H-How’d you know about that?” Annie having this bit of information throws Beth for a loop. Ruby whose eyes have been ping ponging back and forth lets out a small scandalized gasp. 

“Richie Gordon works there as a busboy after he got fired by Boomer for caressing the deli meat in a manner deemed ‘ _ too sexual’.”  _ At the critical stares from the other women the petite blonde can only shrug. “What? He’s a busboy! He doesn’t touch the food people are actually gonna eat.”

Ruby has to chime in here, “Girl why are you even still in contact with a meat molester?”

“He hooked me up with weed one time so I added him on snapchat. And guess who I see on Richie’s snap about glamorous restaurant life with a shot of the crowd but one Beth Boland soon to be Marks and across from her with his back to the camera a mysterious but no doubt  smokin’ hot stranger.” Annie is recounting the event with such emotion for a captive audience of one:Ruby. Beth rolls her eyes and heads into the kitchen for more cheese and another bottle of wine. 

When she returns the two busy bodies were still waiting on answers.

“Like I said nothing happened. We went out to dinner, had a nice time, he drove me home, and I gave him a peck on the cheek to thank him for such a nice evening.”  _ He also may have pinned me to the front door while I attempted to suck his very soul out through his mouth. _

Ruby seems to buy it although Annie looks like she’s offended by the chaste nature of the story.

“What’s his name again?” Ruby asks even though Beth never gave it. Annie’s moved on the stuffing some swiss cheese into a caramel bugel and from the grimace on her face the combination doesn't work.

“It’s Rio, I don’t know his last name.” She’ll have to rectify that the next time she sees him- _ if _ she sees him.

Brown eyes meet hazel before they can’t hold it in any longer, Ruby and Annie burst out laughing taking turns rolling their r’s.

“Oh Mr. Rrrrrio would you like me to dance for you?”

“Mr. Rrrrrio I can’t give you a lapdance for free it’s forty dollars...oh what the heck alright!”

“Mr. Rrrrrrrrrrrrio I’ll show you my special champagne room that hasn’t seen any action in a very very long time.”

They soon dissolved into giggling and snorting messes and Beth can’t help but join in but Annie receives a punch in the arm for the last comment. It all does seem a little ridiculous and almost trash romance novel level when she views it from an outside perspective.

Beth Boland, mother of four, top seller for the school bake sale six years running, and crafts enthusiast meets a tall, dark, and handsome man at her scandalous secret job and takes him to bed well almost.

“So you gonna see him again?” Ruby questions snapping Beth out of her thoughts, “Like was this a one time thing to stick your toe into the dating pool or are you thinking tattoo neck is worth a second date?”

“Honestly I’m not sure if I will see him again.” Beth thinks about the few texts he’s sent since their date nothing overly flirty and not bothersome with constant messages one right after another. Mostly just observations about his day like how horrible traffic is around the lake, or how Doc McStuffin’s was making him lose his mind. Beth had responded in kind with her own observations like how the neighbors dog was kind of a bully to her push over of a golden retriever or how one of the dancers had one too many shots before her shift and puked neon orange all over a chubby businessman. It was all at a relaxed pace with no pressure to respond right away, Beth enjoyed it.

“But I really hope so.” And she couldn’t keep the stupid grin off her face.

The subject soon changed to the other two’s lives and struggles and there was plenty of problems to go around which resulted in more drinking.

Ruby was gunning hard for a promotion at the diner to hopefully support the family enough to get Stan into police training. Sara was much the same, no better, no worse which basically meant she spent most of the school day watching her classmates running around and having fun while she sat on a bench with her oxygen tank. Even Lil’ Money was starting to be affected by the dark mood creeping into the house even though Ruby and Stan being the stellar parents they were tried everything in their power to keep it a happy and stable home.

Annie chooses this opportune moment to pipe in with the fact that she and Gregg had hooked up which causes a whole new uproar. It doesn’t help that Gregg and Nancy are doing IVF or that Sadie is actually flourishing at her new school that Annie was sure she would hate.  

 

So it’s safe to say that overall the long anticipated girls night is a mixed bag of highs and lows. It’s late by the time Ruby and Annie head home and Beth starts locking up and checking on the kids one last time before climbing into bed herself. 

She lays in the dark staring up at the ceiling with a restless energy that she should definitely not have after a full day of after carting around children, cooking breakfast & dinner, running errands, and then hosting girls night. But still she’s wide awake so Beth reaches for her phone on the bed side table.

_ ‘Just a quick goodnight text, keep it casual Beth.’  _ She opens the screen to their messages, the last one was from her about how Big Tony had almost choked to death on one of the shrimp from his shrimp cocktail yesterday and how after Beth had administered a firm slap to the large mans back the poor dead crustacean had launched across the room hitting Carmen right in the eye. Poor Dear danced that night with an impressive shiner hidden under layers of makeup and glitter.

_ *I just wanted to say goodnight soooo goodnight* _

Immediately she wants to throw her phone across the room because that might be the lamest text she’s ever sent to another person not including the time she was in a knitting circle for a few months and collaborated with another housewife on making tie dyed beer cozies. Said cozies were now at the bottom of one of the moving boxes at Dean’s place.

_ *Shouldn’t you be in bed?* _

_ *I’am in bed.* _

_ *tease* _

It takes her a moment and she almost groans in frustration, she really has been out of the dating scene too long and back when she was it was all mixed up with the innocence of youth and thinking herself lucky that she found the ideal guy right off the bat. 

 * _Perv 😜*_ she softens the blow with an emoji of its tongue sticking out, it’s still too early to tell if he’s the type of guy who can handle a little ribbing.

_ *That’s rich coming from a woman who shoved her tongue down my throat the other night.*  _ Okay so he could dish it out as well as take it.

_ *Well then I guess we’re both perverts...only different types.* _

_ *Oh yeah and what type am I ma?* _

_ *Obviously the type that invests in a strip club so he can fondle the waitresses and oogle the strippers* _

_ *Excuse me! I’m a business man and I only go for sexy redheaded waitresses* _

_ *Sorry don’t know any of those* _

_ *Too bad. So darlin’ what type of perv are you?* _

_ *The kind that likes to be manhandled by tall, dark, and handsome businessmen* _

_ *Elizabeth…*  _ There’s a definite warning in that one but the wind blowing against her french doors causes Beth to look over and her alarm clock clearly states that if she doesn’t want to look like the walking dead tomorrow she has to get some sleep.

_ *I should really go to bed now.* _

_ *Me too just finishing up some laundry.* _

_ *Now who’s being a tease?!* _

_ *Goodnight Elizabeth.* _

 

* * *

__

 

In a large warehouse just on the edge of Detroit,

Rio smirks down at his phone before putting it away. He hadn’t been lying when he said that he had a bit more laundry to do, although it was more with processing new counterfeit cash and less Tide plus fabric softener.

Like busy little bees everyone below his watchful eye rushes from processing to cleaning to sorting like a well oiled machine. After this last batch is done, it'll be time to move to the new base of operations.

A chuckle from the corner of his office breaks through the orderly calm and Rio spies Eddie glued to his phone, no doubt scrolling through Candy’s Instagram. Eddie who early on took advantage of the free lap dance part of Rio and Tony’s deal and has fallen hard for the leggy blonde dancer. Rio understands that the others want him to set Eddie straight but the boy needs a little heartbreak afterall they all gotta learn somehow.

“Aight back to work I want everything packed and out of here within the hour!” He barks out his orders keeping a neutral expression like he wasn’t smiling all lovey dovey down at his phone not unlike Eddie less than a minute ago. A few side looks from Demon, Bullet, and Dags show that he’s failed but they’ve been throwing questioning looks at him all week, he nods his head towards the door as a reminder that he doesn’t pay them to sit around all day and they obediently shuffle out. 

And Rio will admit his mood has been lighter since his date with Elizabeth and he even cracks a genuine smile or two, jokes with his employees more. The men who’d been with him the longest knew something was up but were wise enough to not openly question him besides it’s not like he’d tell them the truth, that the main reason one of the floor workers who’d been caught stealing a few days ago got away with only a broken arm and leg instead of one shot to each kneecap was because their boss met a girl.

Not just any girl either but a single mother of four who lived in the suburbs and the only thing inherently risky about her was her current job. In fact he’s not quite sure why he likes Elizabeth so much, she isn’t really his type, Rio mostly going for women a few years younger with complexions similar to his own and no expectations beyond the physical. But he just likes her beyond her generous assets and Bambi eyes, she’s got a whip smart personality and barely notices his rough tattooed exterior. She even wiggles right past it because Rio is damn sure he has never told anyone about Marcus on a first date.

He’s just packing up the last of the paperwork while the vans are being loaded up when the wariness of the day seeps into his bones. He really has to figure out a way to get the most out of what little sleep he does especially since he plans on taking Marcus to the zoo tomorrow, a trip that will entail Rio paying for an adult and child’s ticket to spend hours in the reptile house while his son schools him about the different types of lizards and snakes nonstop.

He loves his son to death but has no idea where Marcus got his talkative side from.

A knock from the office door causes Rio to break his train of thought and he calls for whoever it is to come in.

The very last person he expects is Big Tony but the large club owner waddles in, cane in one hand and duffel bag in the other to plop down in the chair opposite him. A layer of sweat coats his orange skin and he’s breathing hard from the climb up the two flights of stairs to get to Rio’s office. Demon and Dags taken position behind Tony not that they’re needed but they’re probably just as happy at the unexpected guest at the end of a long work day as Rio is.

The younger man lets the older get himself together who takes out a tiger print handkerchief to dab at his forehead, Rio can only shake his head in amusement because it’s hard sometimes to believe the fat bastard was for real.

“I notied I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop off about half of the 100k personally, we’ve had a very good week down at The Pony.”

“Mmhmm how very considerate of you but I usually wait until all the cash has been washed before picking it up.” Rio keeps his tone casual knowing Tony’s real reason for showing up.

“Well I also wanted to check in on the situation with Ali.” Tony’s finally caught his breath now and his fist clenches around his cane, “The fucker came in yesterday while I was out to try once again to steal my talent, luckily my girls are loyal...for now.”

“Funny here I was thinking you were practically glued to that booth Tony.” This joke earns Rio a few gruff laughs from his men and Tony plays along.

“Yeah well I’d much rather take care of him sooner rather than later.”

“Thing is other than trying to get your girls or making coke runs Ali and his boys stay holed up in his joint like it’s a safe haven and it don’t matter how much he pays dirty cops off. If there’s a shootout in there no ones gonna turn a blind eye to it which will bring unwanted attention down on you and more importantly on me.” Rio can see that line of reasoning does not sit well with Tony so he tries another approach.

“Listen Ali is one paranoid motherfucker and from the short conversation I’ve had with him, he ain't too bright either so it’s more of a waiting game of not  _ if _ but  _ when _ he’ll mess up. When he does is when we make our move.” At this point, Rio is done talking and wants the strip club owner out so he slides the duffel full of clean cash to Demon and makes to stand.

Tony gets the hint and rises with a labored grunt but before turning to go he gives the younger gang leader a strange knowing look.

“Ya know I also wanted to invite you to come to The Pony this Saturday around noon just before we open.”

“Why?” Rio really doesn’t like smug look on Tony’s pudgie face.

“Gotta girl auditioning to become a dancer and I figured you might like to watch...seeing that you know her is all.” Tony shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly and Rio stills.

“I was under the impression that Elizabeth was just a waitress.”

“Oh she is for now but a few weeks ago she came to me begging for a second chance sayin' that she’d been practicing and everything.” Tony begins making his way to the door with Rio on his heels, “So out of the goodness of my heart I’m giving her a second chance though it’s no guarantee but between you and me anything would be an improvement on her first time. Plus she’s got four extra mouths to feed and my dancers are well taken care of.” 

_ 'Ain’t you a fuckin saint.’  _ Rio thinks as he opens the door for his associate but his mind can’t help straying to what Elizabeth would look like up on that stage funnily enough he has a hard time imagining it.

“I’ll try and swing by but who knows my type of business don’t allow for much free time.” 

“Oh come on what’s the point of being the boss if you can’t sit back and enjoy the perks every once in a while.” Tony begins his trek down the metal stairs, a much easier journey than going up them as he whistles to himself.

 Rio stares after the man for a good few minutes working his jaw back and forth. A very _very_ large part of him wants to show up on Saturday and watch Elizabeth dance, to see her body bare and swaying before him and like Tony had mentioned it was before they opened so her audience would be minimal plus Rio was the boss he could kick everyone out if he wanted to. Another part of him (not originating from below the belt) knew he would look like he was showing too much favoritism to the old titty bar if he came. He’d set foot in Fine & Frugal twice since he’d started running cash through there and never in the various smaller establishments he used. 

“Sooo  _ Elizabeth _ huh?” Demon’s voice cuts through the air all playful and Dags masks his laugh by coughing into his elbow.

“Oh y’all got jokes now?! Well how’s this for a joke, you two are on the 8am shift so you better get some sleep boys cause it starts in?! four hours.” And Rio’s out the door smirking at the echoed curses behind him, he does let Bullet know to make the two smart mouths go home halfway through that 8am shift, can’t have no sleep deprived fuckers watching his cash. 

The thought of showing up on Saturday weighs on Rio’s mind as he made his way back home. 

* * *

***Saturday 10 minutes before noon***

 Beth can clearly remember the exact day she felt at her lowest, where she’d wanted nothing more than to sink into the cold earth and never see another human being again. Funnily enough it wasn’t during one of her postpartum periods which made her feel like the worst mother in the world because after Kenny she'd learned the feeling would pass with the love and support of her faithful husband, what a load of shit.

It wasn’t even the night she learned of Dean’s affair or as she found out later affairs. Mostly  Beth had been humiliated and filled with rage which resulted in a trashed home office and the discovery of their financial situation.

It was a week after on a Friday afternoon that Beth’s disposition took an intense nose dive. Dean’s mother had offered to take the kids to spend the weekend partly because she could see Beth coming apart at the seams and so she and Dean might be able to talk without the distraction of the children. Beth had dropped the kids off, texted Dean to stay as far away from her as possible, and bought the cheapest whiskey but highest proof she could find plus two pints of  chunky monkey _. _

First she’d spent a full hour in front of her bedroom mirror picking apart every imperfection real or imagined. Which further devolved into comparing herself to Amber which wasn't something Beth thought she’d ever have to do. But it’s just too tempting not to give in to self loathing drunk, no make up, in hot pink baggy sweats Annie’d re-gifted to her after her sister broke up with a long forgotten flavor of the month.

She vaguely recalls drunkenly slurring to her own reflection,  _ “Oh yeah Ammber Smmber you maybe gots youth and bein all skinny minnie, BUT AT LEAST I’VE GOT BIGGER BOOBS!” _

Not her proudest moment but also not a lie.

After that she’d strolled through her home that was a hair's breadth from being seized by the bank and back into Dean’s still destroyed office, she’d picked through whatever was salvageable and set it aside so she could sell it on ebay later. She’d let out a small cheer when she uncovered a sealed bottle of the good stuff deep in the desk drawer, no doubt a gift from a stupid client.

She ordered too much Chinese takeout and messaged Annie and Ruby to swing by when their shifts were over.

It’d been as she was munching on an egg roll and tossing Buddy shrimp from her fried rice that’d she’d started to fantasize.

First it’d been simply about smashing Dean’s face in with the sledgehammer or tying both him and Amber to a dozen of those stupid giant pig balloons and just watching the screaming pair float away.

The fantasizing took a turn from murderous revenge to sexual revenge when she’d moved onto the sweet and sour pork.

She could go on a date with one of the competing dealership owners although the idea of going out with a different but somehow the same skeevy car salesman gives Beth the willies.

Maybe she could go to that bar she passes on the way to Jane’s dance class it’s like Lucky’s or Lucy’s or something. Doesn’t matter what does is she could probably pick up some man there, the complete opposite of her ex like a construction worker or an athlete or an actually successful businessman. Take him back to the house and really get up close and personal with the wood grain of her kitchen table that’d she’d probably have to sell anyway to make it to the end of the month.

Before Beth can get too far ahead of herself Annie arrives and starts pounding drinks to catch up. Hours later Annie's  on the edge of convincing Beth to dye her hair neon blue when Ruby comes in and shuts the whole thing down. The next morning Beth feels like death warmed over and she’s back to the slog of finding a job, sucking up her pride to ask distant relatives for a loan, and rebuilding her life but it takes a long time for the feeling of self loathing to fade and even then it still creeps up her from time to time.

She feels a small inkling of it currently as she stares at herself in the dressing room mirror even though it looks like a completely different woman gazing back at her.

Gone are the puffy red eyes from crying too much and cracked bleeding lips from worrying them after going over overdue bills. In their place is smoky eye shadow and lash extensions that make her blue eyes have even greater depth and a more sultry look. Her lips now soft,plump, and inviting with a dark scarlet color.

Her hair’s a little fuller with her usual loose curls but the red and blondes in it shine a bit more with the help from some of the other dancers products, Beth gently turns down Candy’s offer of bright sparkly gold extensions as that’s not quite the aesthetic she’s going for.

It’s the costume that Beth is the most proud of that took a lot of extra man hours  to create. The first part was a sheer black dressing gown she’d found on a clothing rack long forgotten that she’s stripped of its 80s faux fur trim and replaced with elegant lace tying it together with a satin bow. The lingerie set itself had been kindly donated from Tatianna that Beth had to construct new cups for to support her generous bust and Ruby had been instrumental in sewing the emerald green lace accents to the set and adding the addition of a body hugging sheer skirt to further tease the audience, her best friend letting her imagination run wild while Stan was home looking after the kids. Annie’d mostly drunk vodka and flipped through her library of music to find the correct song for Beth to dance to. She believed that just the right song would make Beth bank and it was her personal mission to find the perfect piece of music.

Beth had immediately vetoed anything by Yung Gravy as too silly and anything by City Girls as being too aggressive, she’d been rather impressed with herself to discover that she recognized almost all of Annie’s hopefuls within their first notes, not too bad for a mom from the suburbs. 

“Come one Beth you’re up. Break a leg!” Comes the excited voice of Carmen from her right and when Beth turns she sees most of the women and a few men like Joe huddled together flashing eager grins and thumbs up, she even spies a few faces not scheduled to work that day. The sight causes tears to gather in the corners of her eyes which she quickly dabs away with a tissue so as not to ruin her makeup. Even a year ago a previous Elizabeth Boland would have looked down on them and seen them as nothing more that borderline charity cases. Only when she’d fallen so far down they’d been willing to offer their friendship and expertise openly without judgement and Beth could only try her best to live up to their expectations. 

“Thanks you guys.” Beth whispered taking her place at the curtained entrance to the main stage as the opening beats to her song play. She gives her friends one last wink before sliding one leg out of the opening beginning her routine.

*** _ Saturday at almost exactly noon*** _

So of course Rio had shown up but without his usual men, the only one he’d brought with him was Eddie in the hopes that the kid would stay near the bar making puppy dog eyes at the employee entrance waiting for Candy and ignoring his boss’s infatuation and god damn is Rio angry that he considers what he has with Elizabeth an  _ infatuation _ .

Big Tony’s back in his usual booth pouring over paperwork but he does give Rio a cheeky nod when the gangleader waltzes in, the bald spot almost blinding in the AM. Rio straight up ignores him and sits at the cleanest table a respectable distance from the stage, a drink is promptly placed in front of him the usual mezcal, he doesn’t usually drink this early but he might need it to get over being here.

_ I been taking long, I been writing songs _

_ I've been feeling gone, don't know whatchu on _

_ You probably prone, you stay all night _

_ I'm prolly prone to play yo' mind _

One long pale leg glides through the opening in the curtain toes painted a deep red with black heels that weren’t as ridiculously tall as he expected them to be but still he wasn’t sure how Elizabeth would move in them.Then her entire body comes into view and Rio felt something inside him come to a complete and sudden halt. 

_ I been in the wrong, I can dig it yeah yeah yeah _

_ I been in there long, feel it in her chest _

_ She gon' get hers, I'm gon' get mine _

_ We bring to life, she fantasize _

Last night and through most of the zoo trip with Marcus Rio had tried to keep from imagining what her performance would be like. Strip clubs weren’t really his thing so he knew only the basics namely that a woman or man got up on stage, danced around, took off at least most of their clothes, let a few drunk idiots shove singles in their g-string, and then climb off the stage with as much dignity and cash as possible.

As amusing as the imagery was he really didn’t get the twerking vibe from Elizabeth, she was too soft spoken for the bombastic nature of the gyrating dance though he could just see her gobsmacked expression if he told her so, gorgeous lips pursing in annoyance.

_ ‘God damn ma.’  _ Rio muses and struggles to keep his closed off expression as one hand moves to cup his jaw cause for a second he’s sure that it’d dropped. He’d didn’t know what he’d expected but it wasn’t for Elizabeth to look beautiful enough to knock him clear across the state.

Maybe he’d thought that there’d be a feather boa or excessive sequins or some shit that would remind Rio that he was in a trashy strip joint but no the redheaded minx managed to straddle the line between classy and erotic like a fuckin pro.

  _Yeah, huh, round 2, round 2, yeah_

_ I said I got her yellin', got her yellin' _

_ Got her yellin', just like _

Everything from the lingerie, the robe, the slow steady heady music, to her movements was methodical and well thought out. Even the fucking lighting was perfect, no crappy lasers or fog machine, just low and golden creating a dream like effect behind.

She breezes right past the pole and instead sways to the beat head bobbing along to the singers sweet words. Hands teasingly moving from threading through her strawberry mane to fingertips tapping along her long pale throat to stroking her collar bones and just as he thinks she’ll go lower she repeats the motion in reverse this time.

 

_ Let that joint breath _

 

Pure instrumental flows through the speakers as Elizabeth turns her back to the room hips still moving and she looks back over she shoulder gaze swiping the non existent audience acting coy through her lashes. She passes over Rio without noticing him so he assumes he must be too in the shadows. She pulls the satin ribbon of her robe in an exaggerated movement then slowly shrugs one shoulder down and then the other before turning back to face forward and letting the flowing sheer material drop at her feet.

  _I been on the drank, I been on the weed_

_ I've been on the plane, I been overseas _

_ You prob say Masego likes _

_ The same old scenes, the same old sites _

_ I been on the road, I been on the train _

_ I been on the boat, running from the pain _

It’s at this point Rio’s leaning forward, hands clasped together, elbows on his knees, jaw rocking back and forth; she's got his undivided attention. She's moving into a kneeling position that requires her hands to skim down her arms to a blink and you’ll miss it squeeze of her large bust to caress her supple thighs. That’s when she makes eye contact with him, blue meeting brown.

Her eyes widen, shoulders tighten, the playful smile she wears drops, and he’s smirking daring her to do something...anything. Does he want her to mess up? Maybe but mostly he just wants to see her rise to the unspoken challenge his presence has caused.

This all happens in the span of a microsecond but he sees a fire in her ignite and she relaxes back into her original position but with a new determination. 

She’s crawling on hands and knees towards him back arched biting her swollen bottom lip. Rio’s trying with all his self control to maintain eye contact but her heavenly cleavage is only a foot away max and god help him it’s just too tempting, he’s only human after all.

_ See ya there, I can't resist _

_ See ya stare, feel ya kiss _

Her daring look becomes more haughty like she understands just how much her little striptease is affecting his self control even though he’s kept his movements to a minimum. His gaze dropping a little here, finger tightening around his still full glass, lower jaw moving from left waiting a beat then shifting to the right.

Her fingers go to fiddle with a small golden latch nestled between her breasts that he hadn’t even noticed until she’d brought them to his attention, two identical latches just underneath.

Fastening number one come away easily.

The second was a little more tricky or at least Elizabeth acted like it was to his torment. 

After what feels like an eternity there was only one seriously tiny latch to go and Elizabeth’s small grin blossomed into a full blown smile and suddenly the tables were turned and she was challenging him seeming to ask him if he could handle it.

All he could do was raise a single thick black eyebrow and nod his head to the side meeting her head on. The only true outward sign of his nerves was the slight shake of his Adams apple beneath his tattoo making the bird of prey’s wings flutter.

 

_ Ingimate intervals, each and every time _

_ I go in and to her garden _

 

So Beth undoes the last latch and lets the straps fall down she arms.

And there she is all shades of gold, pink, and rose with lush peachy skin that’s untouchable and so far above him. All of this is heightened by knowing who she is outside of The Pony but still he wants to put his tarnished hands on her.

Just. One. Caress.

“That was good Bethie we’ll work out a few of the kinks and lengthen the song but I’m sure we’ve got a good act on our hands.” Big Tony’s voice crashes through the suspended moment like a bull in a china shop and Rio lowers his outstretched hand as fast as he can.

Elizabeth has used the time to cover herself back up and moving at record speed to pick up her forgotten robe. She’s humming along to Tony’s rambling clearly half listening to whatever he’s suggesting but her hands shake as she struggles to tie a knot.

For his part Rio downs his drink ignoring the sharp burn and gets up stretching out the stiffness in his long limbs. He says something about being late for another appointment and indicates for a dazed Eddie to follow him, Rio is praying his face doesn’t have a matching stupid expression.

The bright Detroit sun hurts as they exit through the main entrance but he does see a flash of red exiting the main stage through the curtain when glancing over his shoulder.

“Take the caddy and head back to the warehouse.” He instructs Eddie tossing the kid his keys and not waiting for an answer already making his way around the building.

 

* * *

 

How had Beth ended up here?

Not at The Pony that one was easy, she’d driven and arrived jittery like she’d downed an espresso mixed with red bull and jet fuel. Going over every part of her routine down to the most minute detail and changing her mind about a thousand times in a thousand different ways. She’d spent a full two hours with Annie and Ruby on a three-way call last night going over why the music was wrong, how her outfit wasn’t sexy or eye catching enough, how with her luck she’d probably fall flat on her face and have to slink home with a busted nose and no job. 

But the miracle was she hadn’t, Elizabeth Boland had pulled off her routine perfectly well almost perfect if not for a certain someone making his presence known just to throw her off. Except she hadn’t...for a split second after he’d materialized from the shadows her fight or flight instinct had kicked in.

So she’d chosen fight.

And what a glorious victory it’d been, moving her body to and fro, keeping her attention only on him to watch his frame tense and brown almost black eyes fill with lust. She  _ so _ wanted to rub it in his face, problem was said face was currently mashed against hers.

Which brought her back to her original question, how had she ended up here? 

She’d gotten herself together, heard Rio’s explanation about another meeting, and resigned herself to taking a cold shower and having an even colder glass of wine when she got home. Not being dragged into a suspiciously empty dressing room and before she can scream a mouth covering hers, a  _ very familiar _ mouth.

“No more teasing ma.” Rio mumbles hot against her lips as he pushes her robe off and promptly palms the back of her thighs just under her skirt. Molding their bodies together so she has to open her legs to accommodate him as he presses his hardness against her.

There’s a bit of stumbling until they reach the rooms old couch, they flop down onto the old worn leather and are forced to break apart now that they’re in a new position. Him hovering over her both of their lips bruised, breathing labored.

“R-Rio I thought y-you had to…” Again just like last time he’s got her all dizzy and breathless as his hands explore her body from digging into her supple waist and up to the narrow valley of her breasts and his fingers make quick (and not nearly as delicate she did earlier) work of the gold latches. Her breasts spill out once more and her boss/boyfriend/whatever takes a good long admiring look at them and sighs almost as if he’s missed them. It almost makes her laugh given that she’s had her bra back on for a total of five minutes max.

Beth opens her mouth to tease him about that but instead can only produce a high pitched whimper as his mouth surrounds one nipple and he palms the other squeezing and relaxing. But it’s only enough to satisfy her growing need for him so much and her leg moves up to curl around his waist to press until their even closer together.

Still he’s wearing a frustrating amount of layers and her hands that were previously settled on his sides move to work and get rid of his own button up. That’d been relatively easy the challenge came when the frustratingly stubborn man above her pushed her eager hands aside when she reached for his belt and instead moved to unzip her skirt tossing it away.

_ ‘He’s really serious about no more teasing.’ _ Beth muses as he wastes no time as his fingers delve past her lacy thong to stroke her gently and the way his fingers glided across her womanhood comes as a shock, although she isn’t the only one given the way he groans against her nipple, presented with how wet she is for him.

“R-Rio” She’s half begging as she drags his face back up to hers, nibbling on his lower lip each time his thumb circles her clit and his impossibly large fingers, at first one and then two, curl oh so perfectly inside her.

“Come on mami, I got you.” Rio breaths into the side of her neck and it’s something about the combination of his voice, his hand’s methodical and steady pace, and his other hand pinches her hard nipple just on the line between pleasure and pain that sends her over the edge.

For the next solid minute Beth is a quivering mess and she pretty sure that her hips and back arch so far off the old couch that’d she’d almost bucked Rio off to land his skinny ass on the thin carpet.

When she does come to her senses the first thing she sees is Rio all golden skinned and glowing with a most annoying aura of smugness about him sitting back at the end of the sofa. A quick peek down at the tenting of his jeans tells another story.

“What are you doing all the way over there?” Her question airy as she sits up and curls her knee under herself, a self conscious part of herself wants to cover her exposed breasts and stomach but her arms stay at her side too content.

His shaved head cocks to the side as if seriously considering her inquiry, “Just wanted to give you a moment to ya know...collect yourself. You good ma?”

That just gets her even more heated with excitement but two can play this game so she scoots to the edge of the cushion and reaches out for her long forgotten skirt shaking it out in exaggerated motions for imaginary dust and some very real sparkles.

“I think I’m very good-great in fact and terribly hungry. There’s this taco place around the corner that I’ve been craving all morni-” He’s scary quick at pulling her back into his lap and she squeals in delight at his fierce expression, she’ll remind herself to be embarrassed about that sound later.

For now he makes quick work of his pants and boxers and she does the same with her soaked panties. He rolls on a condom he’s gotten from somewhere and to be honest it doesn’t matter as Beth’s past the point of caring as she lifts her hips cradled in his large grasp and sinks down onto his waiting cock.

They moan in unison and take a few moments with this feeling, on the other side of the thick concrete wall the hum of the clubs bass can be heard. Rio forces a breath through his nose fighting the need to move her tightness up and down his cock. Beth for her part needs these seconds to adjust to the way he stretches her, it’s been well over five years since she’s been with anyone and Rio is quite a bit larger than Dean and her vibrator isn't not much smaller than her pinky. 

Eventually her own body gets impatient and she starts moving up and down building up into a steady rhythm that he matches, soon Beth’s gasping and moaning her fingers linking behind Rio’s neck as she rides him.

Rio has shifted to lean back further on the coach giving him more leverage to thrust up into Elizabeth and the way she squeezes him when hitting just the right spot is enough to leave him breathless and it’s a struggle to keep control.

“Please! I-I need I neeeed…” It’s hard to string two thoughts together when he feels so wonderful beneath her much less speak but by some miracle she sort of manages.

“Come on Elizabeth, tell me what you need darlin’!” His voice is barely more than a growl at this point as he goads her.

“Faster...Harder...More” As she says this she takes a moment to bite on the wing tip of his tattoo relishing his grunt of surprise and arousal but not for long as she suddenly finds herself flipped onto her back and he’s picked an almost brutal pace causing her eyes to roll back.

 She tried with all her might to match him but when he reached down to circle her clit it resulted in waves of pleasure that quickly overtook her. Grinding her hips against his Beth lifted up to meet his own searching lips and silently screamed her orgasm into his mouth.

He’s only a few strokes behind and almost crushes her as he cums, chest to chest bringing in great gulps of air with her fingers stroking up and down his relaxed back.

It’s just like the night they’d met, there’s this own little bubble around them blocking out everything but the way he softens inside her or how his forehead rests on the curve of her breast. 

It’s a moment to savor because it’ll be gone too soon.

They drink each other in exchanging lazy kisses and unspoken words as the outside world goes on. The cheap leather coach has splits in the cushions that dig into Beth’s back and Rio can feel that the room is just chilly enough to raise goosebumps on his bare ass.

“We should move.”

“Gotta get the fuck up.”

They say at the same time resulting in laughter on both their parts with Beth’s being high and girlish and Rio’s is more of an amused chuckle but still they ring with the same carefree nature.

At some point in the afterglow Beth lifts her head to look around the rather vacant dressing room with it’s piles of makeup and brushes, the clothing rack busting with boas and props, but somehow no talent is to be found. She raises a brow in question at Rio resting her dimpled chin on his smooth chest.

“Oh right, I told them to get the fuck out earlier.” He nonchalantly waves his hands because he is the boss after all and part of that comes with telling others what they can and cannot do.

Beth knows that she should be peeved that he’s kicked her friends out just to have some private hanky panky but frankly her limbs feel like jelly and a sensation of euphoria is enveloping her making it hard to care.

“Hmmm I guess we can rest up a little then before round two.”

A swift smack to her backside results in a startled yelp from Beth.

“Round  _ TWO _ Mama you’re killin me!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish I could say that my lateness was due to Hot Girl Summer but it was more like Struggle Bitch Summer but I did it and I'll be the first to admit I'm intimidated by smut, writing it not reading it. Just want to say to every one having trouble updating their Brio fic PLEASE KEEP GOING! I love/cherish all of them and if I can do it so can you. If not for me think of all the returning fans coming back when season 3 hits they'll be so happy and grateful.
> 
> Also not misgendering Sadie, he just hasn't come out yet in the timeline of the show which my story is semi mirroring.
> 
> The song Beth danced to is Prone by Masego which my dumb brain totally forgot was actually featured in the show and heard it again and though 'oh this is sooo Brio.' 
> 
> Beth's outfit with some minor tweaking(please forgive I'm unsure how to hyperlink):
> 
> https://www.nightcloset.com/products/elegant-sheer-maxi-length-robe-with-eyelash-lace-detail?variant=19288098734193¤cy=USD&utm_campaign=gs-2019-03-08&utm_source=google&utm_medium=smart_campaign
> 
> https://darkestfox.com/collections/french-boudoir/products/savannah-soutien-gorge-jupe
> 
>  
> 
> Please kudos, comment, review, share with everyone. Also these two sure are happy right now huh? Would be a shame is someone...fucked it all up.


	5. One Little Slip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor timing can really make or break a relationship.

Beth was in a good mood, hell she’d been in a good mood for the past three months and it showed no signs of stopping. The kid’s grades were starting to pick back up after their downturn caused by her and Dean’s divorce, especially Kenny’s math. She finally had enough disposable income to treat herself to a massage plus mani/pedi, Beth was pretty sure the last time she’d gotten anything close to a spa day was when she was pregnant with Jane. And she was dating a man that treated her like...like…

 

Like she was worth it.

 

Truth be told their relationship was mostly based on sex but oh what earth-shattering sex it was. It was like they couldn’t keep their hands off each other somehow they both regressed into horny teenagers which was an incredibly strange revelation to wrap her head around seeing as she’d never been a particularly horny teenager.

 

They’d go out for a nice dinner date and end up sneaking off to the bathroom before dessert arrived, she’d invite him over to watch a rom-com and be on all fours by the opening credits, one time he’d planned a sweet picnic in the park with chocolate dipped strawberries and fresh squeezed lemonade and she’d dragged him into some secluded bushes in the middle of the afternoon... _ in public no less. _ Not that the thrill of being caught didn’t make it ten times hotter. Deep in her gut she knows that they’re shadow banned from at least three separate restaurants and when she’d confessed this feeling to Rio he’d only laughed in agreement.

 

It should embarrass her, as a mother of four, long time PTA member, and staple of the community Beth Boland shouldn’t be going around and hooking up with her boyfriend then again she shouldn’t be dancing at a strip club downtown. Was Rio even her boyfriend? If pressed Beth wanted to say yes but they’d never gotten around to discussing clear boyfriend/girlfriend labels although she was content to be with him and only him. Rio had assured her late one night she was the only girl he was seeing, apparently his line of work barely allowed time for their relationship, him having multiple partners was just not feasibly possible. 

 

His work was another thing they haven’t really discussed because besides Rio crashing her nerve-wrecking audition he hasn’t been back to The Pony. As far as she knows he’s a very hands off type of boss when it comes to the various business’ he finances. She has the vaguest idea that whatever he’s involved in might not totally be above board but for now she’s content to let sleeping dogs lay. With Dean when confronted with his secrets she’d felt a long awaited betrayal but Rio doesn't owe her any such commitment just like she doesn’t owe him even though technically she is his employee... _ semantics _ .

 

_ “Gotta know something darlin’ if I show up to your work it ain’t a good omen.” _

 

He’d shared that little nugget of wisdom after she’d teased him about never coming in to just enjoy the ambiance of glitter and watered down booze.

 

A part of her is actually quite glad that Rio doesn’t show up, especially on the weekends when she’s scheduled to dance. It’s not so much that she’s ashamed of this new work, she makes more in an hour than she did in a whole shift of serving, and she has actual pull now so when someone gets too handsy she can get them tossed on their ass, the bruising on her butt and thighs has gone down significantly well besides the ones Rio provides. Finally it feels like she’s digging herself out of this hole Dean created and not slowly sinking into the mud.

 

It’s more so the kind of person she becomes all scantily dressed and made up so far out of her domestic comfort-zone that she doesn’t want him to see. With Rio she feels confident, sexy, and totally woman while still being herself. With the other patrons of The Pony it feels...less so.

 

Now men will paw at her just on the border of being kicked out and she’ll have to smile while they shove wrinkled twenties into her garter belt with sweaty fingers. They’ll mumble some down right gross things into her ear while she’s dancing in their laps that she has to giggle and make non committal flirty responses to.

 

Those are the clients (or ‘guests’ as Big Tony insists they be called) that she performs for once and then never sees again and Beth is sure that they’d say the same disgusting stuff if they’d asked Candy or Carmen or one of the other dancers for a lap dance. 

 

There’s also the women who will (usually fall down drunk while wearing a tiny cheap veil) grab Beth’s breast and then get mad when she slaps their hands away with the excuse that ‘ _ we’re both girls it doesn even matter, I jus wanted to see if they were real.’ _

 

Once in a while men would show up flashing rolls of cash and promise Beth the moon and more. That he has a yacht in the south of France he’d love to show her or a cozy loft in NYC with the most stunning view of the Empire State Building. It was just too bad that with that kind of money nearly all of them neglect to take off their wedding rings. She can just imagine Dean making the same type of promises to Amber on top of his office desk, empty promises with their life savings.

 

She told Rio and the girls about all these characters over casual drinks or during a quiet nights in when she was absolutely sure no little ears were eavesdropping from the staircase. They’d laughed about it with Annie pantomiming  _ ‘making it rain’ _ over her, Ruby would add in her own stories about the weird diner patrons she had to deal with, and Rio would semi-joke that he’d have to send one of his boys over to make sure everyone was behaving properly.

 

There was only one kind of client she hadn’t told them about mostly because she knows exactly how they’d react.

 

There were certain men who came to the club on a regular basis with a small handful coming pretty much everyday. She could never figure out how they had the type of cash flow to do so but back when she was a waitress it didn’t really matter they tended to tip well and not cause trouble. She’d make light conversation, get their drink, and then she was forgotten about.

 

These men mostly fixated on one single dancer, an ideal example being Marty coming every night to watch Carmen twerk her little heart out. Sometimes they’d send flowers or chocolates backstage to entice the dancer to come out and chat, most of the girls spoke to them for all of five minutes out of misplaced guilt.

 

It hadn’t been a problem when she was just waitressing but now it was. 

 

Now she has what the other girls called an _ ‘admirer’. _ His name was actually Craig and during the day he’s an investment banker with two teenage sons and a wife who could care less about where he went at night. Craig went on and on about his domineering boss, his kids being ungrateful brats and his wife a drunken shrew. Beth more or less half listened to him complain about his shitty life all the while he’d gulp gin & tonics and shove hundreds in her bra strap. He’d called Beth a good listener when in reality she just felt sorry for everyone in Craigs life, herself included.

 

After a full week of this Craig started showering her with compliments and stopped requesting other dancers insisting on Beth and only Beth.

 

_ ‘You know how to treat a man the way he deserves to be treated right Beth? Of course you do.’ _

_ ‘Just coming to see you makes my day Beth.’ _

_ ‘How do you keep getting more and more beautiful every time I see you?’ _

 

The truth was that these compliments weren’t so bad she’d certainly had more disgusting things directed at her even before she started working at The Pony. But then came the gifts like champagne with imported truffles and a dozen pink lilies, once he’d even sent a lovely brouche in rose gold with a note attached saying that it would look amazing with her skin tone. She’d given the flowers and booze and candy away to the other dancers while returning the broach citing that her boyfriend wouldn't be happy if she accepted gifts from other men.

 

She’d actually never told Rio about any of it but it was probably better if she diffused the situation on her own.

 

Still Craig kept coming back night after night with more expensive gifts and tales about how much better he’d feel after a little vacation time in Fiji without his wife and kids heavily implying that Beth was not only invited but encouraged to come along.

 

She knew exactly how Ruby and Annie would respond; they’d insist that she stop, that she quit and get a normal job even if it paid less. She could see their attitudes shifting each time she told them a story from the club, a lift of an eyebrow when she mentioned the increasing number of burly patrons or off handed comment when she talked about the need for better security. If she told them about Craig it might just be the straw that broke the camel's back.

 

She wasn’t exactly sure how Rio would react though. Nothing in their time together gave her the impression that he was a particularly possessive or jealous person; when they went out other women fell over themselves to flirt with him or buy him drinks, once she had to loudly cough  _ THREE FREAKING TIMES  _ to get the other woman to notice he had a date. 

 

That’s as far as she let her own jealousy go, just coughs or little touches to his arm or shoulder to let the other women know that they were together. Beth could still hear her mother's lecturing voice in the back of her head talking about the little green eyed monster being the ugliest trait. But still it felt like Rio saw through even her most subtle attempts and he would just give her a look before crooked half grin would break out across his stupid, dumb, handsome face.

 

Still this was her problem to fix and she wanted to go through the proper channels first. Unfortunately the proper channels all lead to one person, Big Tony.

 

***

_ “I just think you should encourage him to...I don’t know get lap dances from other dancers or at least not come here every night.” Beth pleads her case to Tony in the dressing room half an hour before she’s set to perform, he doesn’t even blink as multitudes of half naked women stroll past. _

 

_ “Bethie I’m not seein’ what the big issue is! You got yourself a golden opportunity here, a guy’s willing to hand over his entire wallet and more all you gotta do his show him a little T&A...well in your case a lot of T&A.” _

 

_ “I know but one day Craig’s not going to be satisfied with dances and then what am I gonna do?!” _

 

_ “So ya fuck him, let him get you out of his system.” When Tony sees Beth’s face getting red and blotchy with rage he back tracks, “Sorry sorry forgot about your little boytoy.” _

 

_ It was extremely challenging not to roll her eyes at that. Rio is no one’s boytoy and she’s not some cougar preying on a younger man. _

 

_ “Listen you gotta get a bigger clientele base and that means you can’t be sayin’ no when guys want a private lap dance.” Tony then pats her knee in a pitying manner before waddling off to get on the case of one of the newer girls who’s been sneaking too many drinks on shift. _

 

***

So that had gotten her officially nowhere and the days kept passing with no end in sight of Craig losing interest. Even her ‘accidentally’ spilling his drink in his lap the other day did nothing to deter him. He’d affectionately called her ‘clumsy’ and promptly ordered a new one.

 

“Beth...Beth...Earth to Elizabeth Boland.”

 

Ruby’s hand waving back and forth in front of her face snaps Beth back into the moment, girls night. No men, no work, and no problems just wine and binging Queer Eye.

 

“Oh please leave the woman alone, can’t you see she’s daydreaming about the  _ D _ .” Annie says before shoving a frankly inhuman amount of salt and vinegar chips into her mouth.

 

“I was not!” Beth’s quick to deny but the looks the other women are giving her tell her that she’s lost the argument before it’s even started.

 

“I was questioning if it’s too early for Rio and I to...to…” She searches for the right words to explain but she can’t grasp them.

 

“Move in together!” Ruby guesses with a snap of her fingers and Annie isn’t a millisecond behind her.

 

“Try Anal!”

 

“What!?! No to both!” She takes a big gulp of her chardonnay, “I was thinking about introducing him to the kids and vise versa.”

 

“Well I mean  _ we _ haven’t even met him, you’re just so secretive about him. When we asked you what he looked like all you could give us was ‘ _l_ _ ike if a South American spotted jaguar was a human man _ .” Ruby purses her lips and Beth has to give her that. She hasn’t really been forthcoming with details about her and Rio’s relationship. She’s told the kids even less only saying that mommy had made a new friend at work.

 

“Yeah and when we asked for a pic you said that he doesn’t really like taking pictures.” Annie throws over her shoulder as she makes her way to the kitchen no doubt to raid the kids snack drawer.

 

“Well it’s true.” And it is the truth though she gets why they might see it as a red flag. But after twenty years of Dean’s face being plastered on every local news commercial break, the anonymity feels refreshing although Rio had quipped about being on Facebook when she'd asked. When she’d checked it, all that came up was various pictures of hipstery restaurant food and short blurbs on how the Lions would do this season, with the most recent post being from 2015.

 

“I just like Rio m-maybe more than like and I want to take the next step forward with him.” She implores her sister and best friend to understand. She’s never been so secretive about any of her other relationships all one of them. But Rio wasn’t Dean in fact he was the exact opposite, he was a good man.

 

Perhaps it was wrong of her to have such an untainted view of Rio.

 

Besides Dean had mostly calmed down with the whole moving back in and being a family again spiel. He hadn’t really disclosed much to her besides that he was looking into getting a new condo and  _ ‘focusing on me’.  _ The truth of the matter was Amber had run off to L.A. with a new sugar daddy that could actually provide the sugar taking the yellow sports car Dean had been unable to sell with her, all detailed in an email sent to her from the salespeople she was still friendly with at Boland Motors. 

 

So she cuts him some slack. Encouraging him to get back into poker nights with his high school teammates and she takes the kids for an extra day so he can fix some things around his mom’s house and prep his new place.

 

She finds herself doing a lot of things she never imagined she’d do in a million years let alone the last few months. Being more financially independent than she’s ever been, being civil with Dean in any capacity, having a boyfriend that seems too good to be true. Was she worrying over nothing? It just felt like any moment the balloon would pop and out would burst glitter and streamers proclaiming  _ ‘Sike! You big dumb idiot!’  _

 

It wasn’t until after the girls had gone home and Rio had shown up that the subject of meeting the kids crossed her mind again.

 

It’s right in the middle of post orgasmic bliss where they’re catching their breath before round two. 

 

“Penny for ‘em.” His voice is rough and gravely like it always is in these moments. She should be used to it by now but still a shiver runs up and down her naked back.

 

“I’ve just been thinking about the future.” She mumbles against his chest, ear pressed close to listen to his heartbeat. “I used to avoid thinking about it, never really seemed very bright.”

 

She can feel his whole torso tense and then just as suddenly relax. She understands why, they’ve been able to fuel this relationship so far with flirting, heated glances, and tearing each others clothes off. 

 

This is uncharted territory for them.

 

“Yeah what kind of future were you thinking bout?” His hands are caressing her sides which signals to her that she doesn’t have much time. “Cause I was thinking of us going to this cafe I know downtown they got these omelets with hash browns in the middle-.”

 

She pinches his thigh lightly to cut him off, “I was actually thinking of going to this park about five minutes away. It’s got everything, a wide  open field, small lake,...a big playground with a jungle gym.”

 

She looks up at him to gauge his reaction because she knows he understands her phrasing, he’s probably the smartest man she’s ever met, not that she’s met many of those. Rio remembers small incidents even weeks later, does the weekly crossword in the morning over tea and crepes (although she does tease him about doing it in pen just to show off), and he’s the most updated person on current events she’s ever met. One slow morning at The Pony, Sam had switched the tv that normally showed generic images of women dancing to the news. While Beth was wiping down a table trying to get a really tough spot out, breaking news had come out that a major Colombian crime boss had been gunned down in a raid on his complex. Not wanting to miss her chance Beth had grabbed her phone and rushed to the back to gleefully inform Rio something he didn’t know yet. Her hopes were dashed when Rio not only knew about the crime lords death but also how the man had ruled everything in Columbia with an iron fist from drugs to guns to human trafficking, and then Rio started throwing out theories about how the evil fucker had messed up. She’d almost chucked her phone across the room when he’d teasingly suggested making her a twitter account.

 

“Marcus is a sucker for monkey bars.” 

 

“Oh I should tell you about the time Jane declared herself queen of the big red slide and charged kids a quarter each to slide down it.” A grin splits her face as she looks up into his, relieved to know she’d worried over nothing.

 

“She sounds like a real hustler.” His hands are getting bolder, squeezing and grabbing more flesh and inching to places that’ll have her whimpering in no time.

 

“Funny thing is, she was too scared to go down it herself. Climbed to the very top, chickened out at the last second, didn’t want to look like a baby in front of everyone so started demanding a toll.” Her breath is coming out harder now and she knows they’re about to go past the point of no return. “So Saturday afternoon?”

 

She feels him huff against her neck where he’s buried his face but she just wants a verbal agreement.

 

“Alright Ma, Saturday now please can’t you see I’m quite busy?” His head dips to the tops of her breasts and she tries to wiggle away from his ticklish beard scruff which only makes him latch on harder.

 

“I’m glad Tony chose you and not the other guy.” Beth sighs just a throw away thought but strangely she feels Rio go all tense again and this time he doesn’t relax. Instead he flips their positions so he’s on top with her pressed against the pillows. 

 

“What you mean chose me ma? Big Tony got a matchmaking business goin’ on?” His tone is playful and nonchalant. “If anything  **_I_ ** allowed him the privilege of working for me.”

 

“No no Big Tony is a lot of things believe me but he is most definitely not a bleeding heart romantic, I just meant he met with a few other people before you came to the club.”

 

“Hmmmm.” His hands have stopped their wandering and Beth hopes he isn’t getting tired, she was really looking forward to round two and three...maybe four if they paused for snacks.

 

“Don’t worry, none of them were as good looking as you.” She trails a finger along the strong bridge of his nose. “The guy just before you had the biggest mole on his face I’d ever seen.”

 

She giggles at the look of genuine surprise on Rio’s face before zeroing in on the tick of his jaw, “I seriously thought it was going to bite my hand off when I was delivering their drinks.”

“Lucky for me you got a thing for tattoos and not moles.” He jokes but there’s a strain to his voice when he says the last word.

“Yeah yeah yeah I’ve heard it all before, good girls can't resist an inked up bad boy, now please can we get back to the business at hand.” She whines surprising the both of them, apparently she can be pretty bossy when aroused.

“Don’t worry Darlin’ we’re just gettin’ started.” And with that he moves down her body to settle his head between her thighs and soon she forgets her own name.

 

*** _ Saturday 9am*** _

 

Rio likes to keep things real simple with his partners. 

 

Move the product, don’t get caught, and if you snitch you’re dead. He might have to add a rule about having some fucking professional courtesy after this whole business with Big Tony was over.

 

“Trisha I'm you that if you attempt that spinning kick shit ONE MORE TIME, YOU’RE OUT ON YOUR FLAT ASS! NOW GO GET DRESSED!” Even through the thick wooden door of his office Tony’s voice is booming.

 

“Jesus these women will be the death of me. Hey! What the fu-” And that’s Rio’s moment to turn around. Lounging leisurely in Big Tony’s over sized purple leather chair, it’s so cheesy and Bond villainish but he’s not one to pass up a good opportunity to be dramatic. 

 

He spins to take in the form of Tony sprawled out on the worn and stained carpet of the private office, still shaking off the sucker punch Dags just delivered.

 

“Hey Tony we gotta have a little chat.” he draws fingering the barrel of his pistol in his lap, it’s golden and showy, serves its purpose for intimidating people but it’s hardly what he’d actually use for disposing of rotten eggs.

 

Dags and Demon haul Tony into the small chair in front of the desk none too gently while Carlos leans against the wall across the room making a show of cleaning his silencer and screwing it off and on.

 

He watches Tony’s half panicked beady little eyes taking everything in well one of his beady little eyes, the other is already starting to swell up.

 

“What are you talking about Rio? My Man! I thought we had a good thing going h-here.” It’s almost admirable the brave front Tony puts on.

 

“We did Tony we did but then I had to learn from a little bird y about how you were talking to Ali not a week before you got in touch with me.”

 

“I-It’s just business man.”

 

“Nah ya see it’s not just business. I don’t like finding out that the man I’ve been having wash my money is just using my muscle and rep to take over a rival because he couldn’t to do so himself.”

 

“I was-”Ton starts to explain himself but Rio just continues.

 

“I also hate being lied to.” He’s up now walking around to lean against the front of the desk, leaning forward into Tony’s space. Poor guy’s developed flop sweats.

 

“I didn’t lie, I just didn’t tell you the whole story. I didn’t want to ruin nothin’’.” Rio’s getting real sick of the sound of Tony’s voice so he nods over to Dags who delivers another punch, busting the club owners lip open.

 

“Aaaah FUCK!”

 

“Lies by omission are still lies Anthony, get up to date on modern ethical theories.”

 

It’s easy to see the cracks forming in Big Tony as he spits a mixture of blood and spittle onto the floor. Everyone has a breaking point and Tony who’s used to bossing around strippers with more bark than bite, meathead bouncers, and the odd drunk party boy, has got a very low breaking point. 

 

Rio’s a tiny bit surprised when instead of becoming a blubbering mess the larger man starts to laugh.

 

“Ha fine I confess, you were an easy solution to a problem. You do the dirty work and get rid of Ali then after the dust was settled I take my two clubs and go for greener pastures.”Tony’s beady little eyes never break from Rio’s. “Partner with someone bigger than the so called ‘King of Detroit’ _ puh-lease  _ you’re just a snot nosed kid who got lucky.”

 

Rio’s been called a lot worse things by people much better than Tony so he just rolls his eyes at the doomed man’s insults. “You know Tony I do have some good news for you. Ali, your little rotten egg is taken care of.”

 

It’s Tony’s turn to be surprised and his wide orange forehead wrinkles, “But how?”

 

“Turns out you were right, Ali does have an uncle in Saudi Arabia that could afford to bulldoze the entirety of East Detroit and build his own personal golf course on top without a second thought. Imagine his surprise when he found out that his least favorite nephew was using his monthly allowance to snort coke, run a shitty strip joint, and play pretend gangster. Apparently young Ali was supposed to be working on his degree in accounting at MU and going to mosque every Friday.”

 

“So you snitched.” Unprompted Demon drives his steel toed boot into Tony’s knee and there’s a definite  _ *pop*, _ a howl rings through the air.

 

“I look at it as leading a wayward son back to the humble teachings of Allah and Ali’s uncle agrees. The boy is on a private jet back home and I’m now the new owner of ‘The Beaver’ got a great deal on the place too.”

 

Tony just makes a small whimpering sound holding his obviously dislocated knee.

 

“Now I just have one rotten egg to take care of. So it’s your choice Tony, I’m in a good mood, how should I take care of you?”

 

“I think...I think...I think you should shove your head up your own fucking ass you bastard!” Rio had to hand it to Tony, stupidly brave to the last. “Oh wait you can’t it’s already stuck in Beth Boland’s cunt.”

 

There’s a shift in the air and it’s not like Rio hadn’t anticipated Elizabeth being mentioned but it causes a twist in his gut, still Tony continues.

 

“Figured I got lucky when you and her started fucking, her fat tits would be the perfect distraction while I laid the ground work.” Tony lets out a weak laugh that finishes in almost hacking his lungs out. “Don’t feel too dumb Rio, men vastly more powerful than you or I have been brought down due to bitches far uglier than Bethie. Tale as old as-AAAAAAAAAAA!”

 

The bullet from Rio’s pistol travels at an angle through Tony’s remaining good knee like a hot knife through butter.

 

He’s so done with today well really he’s just done with being here. He’s still gotta get Marcus from Rhea’s, go to the store to pick up some brioche and almonds so he can attempt Elizabeth’s french toast recipe that had knocked his socks off last week, and then it would be time to meet Elizabeth and her kids at the park. Funny he’s literally standing over a man squirming on the ground in pain from a gunshot wound that he’d caused and the thought of meeting his girlfriend’s kids has him feeling nervous.

 

Would they like him? Would they be scared of him? Marcus’ friends tended to get pretty intimidated when they met him the first time, usually took a few play dates before they settled down. Should he wear a scarf to cover the tattoo? No that would be dishonest-

 

“Fuck you! Agh!” More of Tony’s blood is spit on his Jordans and it’s time to wrap this up. He motions for Dags and Demon to get Tony up when the door to the office opens. He shoots Carlos, who was in charge of locking it a hard glare but all he gets in return is a half apologetic shrug.

 

“Sorry Tony just wanted to stop by and discuss my sche-”

 

Of all the people that work in The Pony Palace from the dancers, bartenders, waitresses, bouncers, hell even the little old cleaning lady that’d seen more that any human should possibly see to walk into that office at that moment, it had to be Elizabeth Boland.

 

He watches her pretty blue eyes widen and dart around the room. Taking in his men then himself in the middle before traveling down the length of his arm to where his gun is and finally at Big Tony on the floor attempting to stop the bleeding from his bullet hole. Her full red lips open and close over and over like a very cute goldfish as her brain tries to make sense of what she’s seeing. 

 

No one moves. No one fucking breaths.

 

He sees her take a deep breath and quickly his index finger presses against his lips.

 

_ ‘No screamin’ ma.’ _

 

But it’s the wrong thing to do because like a flash she’s gone and he’s left staring at the empty space she’s left behind.

 

“Want us to get her boss?”

 

“Nah I know where to find her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bet you bitches thought I was dead well lucky for you and unlucky for me I'm not. So please enjoy this chapter I spent way to long writing and rewriting.
> 
> Funny how I have a Good Girls Stripper AU and then the show decides to have a stripper story line...every interesting. Not like a million other crime shows also don't have strip club plot lines.
> 
>  
> 
> All mistakes are my own still need to get a Beta. Also want to encourage all the other GG fic writers to keep working and updating your works. Seriously if I can do it you can too honey!
> 
> Please kudo, share, and comment it fills me with so much joy. Also please don't get on me for Beth not having a stripper name, I couldn't think of one. If you can think of one please comment down below and I will judge them.

**Author's Note:**

> This legit started out as a one shot idea for Beth being a stripper and Rio watching her dance. Then I imagined Rio the stripper and well it ballooned into a multi chapter outline and several pages on google docs. All of the wonderful Brio Au's coming out inspired me to put out my own so here it is.
> 
> 'I Don't Mind' by Usher was what I might have chosen Beth to dance to in my one shot but I think its too silly for Rio's raw sexual energy. My strip club music library is limited so if you think any songs would work please let me know. Also I thought of the name Carmen before realizing it was just Rio's nickname for Dean but purled. I'm not smart. 
> 
> I would like to let everyone know that I have the utmost respect for exotic dancers and people in the sex work industry, any helpful tips would be great though to keep true to character some elements of the story will have derogatory terms so just know that don't reflect my personal viewpoint.
> 
>  
> 
> Kudos and comment please! <3


End file.
